Even as the State transport department is planning a feasibility study on installing panic buttons in call-taxis, some cab operators have already begun fixing them in their vehicles to ensure the safety of customers.
The police and government woke up to the gravity of the situation after the rape of a woman in Delhi by an Uber call taxi driver in December last year. Senior police officers said that the installation of panic buttons in the taxis will be strictly enforced once the government brings out guidelines for the vehicles.
Transport department officials said they are planning to rope in private agencies to study where to set up the control room. “Unless there is a centralised control room, it would not be possible to monitor the vehicles. The focus would be on cabs that operate for IT companies,” said the official.
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Meanwhile, some call taxi operators have voluntarily started installing the buttons in the vehicles on a trial basis and some are incorporating it in their mobile applications too. “I have got the buttons installed in a few cars. One will be on the dashboard and the other will be near the rear seat,” said Redsun. C. Ambigapathy, president, Tamil Nadu Call Taxi Owners Association.
Officials from Bharati Call Taxi, who are experimenting with the equipment in five vehicles, said that if the passenger presses the button, it will show up in the respective operator’s control room.
Fast Track and OLA cabs, are also trying out these security measures in their mobile applications. “We have launched an SOS button for customers in our app, which when activated, will send out all details of the trip including GPS coordinates to a pre-set friend or family member of the user via SMS and e-mail,” a spokesperson of OLA cabs adds.
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Senior police officers said that the panic buttons will serve as a deterrent. “Once a centralised control room is set up, it will be easy to prevent crime. Patrol vehicles can trace the cabs in which the panic button was used,” the officer says.