Vehicle location-tracking devices with panic buttons unveiled

: Vehicle location- tracking devices with panic buttons were launched in Kerala Thursday by Indian Auto Company (IAC).

The device comes with a panic button which can be pressed in case of any emergency and a notification would be directly sent to the government authorities who would be able to take immediate action, a press release said.

The gadget would be installed also in trucks as well as buses enabling fleet owners to monitor driver behaviour such as speeding above limits, harsh acceleration, braking, cornering, night driving and other important parameters, the release said.

This in turn ensures correct driving practice thereby reducing wear and tear of the vehicle, improving fuel efficiency while also helps in overall safety of the driver, the passengers and other road-users, it said.

The gadget helps in minimising turnaround time, ensuring route adherence and checking malpractices such as unauthorised use of vehicle and misuse of fuel, the release said.

The devices are certified as per Automotive Industry Standard (AIS 140) by ICAT (International Centre for Automotive Technology).

IAC, which is a New Delhi-based DIPP-registered start-up offering automotive solutions, has also received certificate of compliance from Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC) and R&D organisation of the Ministry of Electronics and IT here.

AIS 140 is a new standard announced by the government to improve safety in all public transport vehicles such as taxis, buses and other public services vehicles.

Kerala has 79 RTOs and more than 60,000 vehicles have national permit apart from vehicles registered for public services vehicles including taxis, buses and others.

All the vehicles would now have to be compulsorily fitted with AIS 140 standard tracking device, the release said.

Our AIS-140 compliant vehicle-tracking devices are also IP-67 rated (water and dust proof) which enable vehicles to be tracked on our device agnostic platform both on web and mobile devices ensuring safety and compliance," the release quoted IAC spokesperson as saying.

Citizens can be assured of safe transport with the availability of the panic button in case of emergencies, which can ensure timely response from the authorities concerned, said the release.

In addition, the gadgets would be integrated with CDAC which is offering the backend system connectivity across the state, the release said.