CB BureauOn Children’s Day, 14 November, an awareness drive was organised by Exide Life Insurance at key locations in Bengaluru to highlight the safety of children pillion riders. The activity, in collaboration with Sri Chaitanya Techno School, Seshadripuram, had students gather at busy junctions of Chalukya Circle and Millers Road, among other locations, to host safety demonstrations and spread the message of helmet safety for children. As part of its safety awareness week, Helmet Saves Children, from 14 to 20 November, the company aims to create awareness on the importance of wearing a helmet while riding a two-wheeler and road safety for children.
The activities included students marching on the roads holding placards with road-safety messages and handing over leaflets on helmet safety for children to two-wheeler riders. A group of students wearing helmets and Exide Life Insurance volunteers took over high-traffic roads and junctions to engage with two-wheeler riders, especially those with a child riding pillion without a helmet.
The awareness drive was inaugurated by Sarah Fathima, deputy commissioner, Bangalore Traffic Police. A rap song video, ‘The Voice of Children’, was also launched by the company on their social media channels to kickstart the campaign. The flash mob-style rap video is produced in Hinglish to educate both adults and children on the importance of following basic road-safety protocols. The video can be watched through this link.
Helmet Saves, Exide Life Insurance’s flagship CSR campaign, was launched in 2017 to create awareness on the importance of wearing a helmet for two-wheeler riders. As part of this, a survey was conducted on helmet-wearing habits among riders which revealed that nearly 50 per cent of parents would allow their children to ride a motorcycle without a helmet, and 75 per cent see children riding pillion without any protection at least once a day. In 2017, about 98 two-wheeler riders died daily on Indian roads for not wearing helmets, according to a recent Road Accident Report.
In a press release shared with CB, Mohit Goel, director, marketing and direct channel, Exide Life Insurance said, ‘Last year we conducted a survey on helmet-wearing habits and received alarming insights regarding child pillion riders – such as 3 of 4 children do not wear a helmet while riding pillion. As per the recent UN Motorcycle Helmet Study, wearing an appropriate helmet improves the chances of survival by 42% and helps avoid 69% of injuries to riders. It is crucial that we address this issue by creating awareness among both parents and children.’
CB’s queries on other initiatives that the company has taken up under the Helmet Saves programme, future plans, and how they measure the impact of these initiatives went unanswered.