Karnataka’s move to act against unsafe half-helmets should extend to the manufacturers and retailers supplying them, the Two-Wheeler Helmet Manufacturers Association of India said on Monday, as the state examines legal provisions to implement Transport Minister Byrathi Suresh’s announcement of action against such helmets.
The association said enforcement focused only on riders would be insufficient without parallel checks across the supply chain. It specifically called for action against products carrying counterfeit ISI marks, which it said continue to reach consumers despite a national certification requirement that has been in force for several years.
Government data presented in Parliament shows Karnataka recorded 3,581 deaths linked to non-use of helmets in 2024 — close to ten a day — out of 12,390 road accident deaths in the state that year. The figures do not specify how many fatalities involved substandard helmets as opposed to no helmet at all, but the association said the availability of non-compliant products was a contributing factor to rider risk.
Nationally, the National Crime Records Bureau’s Accidental Deaths & Suicides in India 2024 report recorded 1,75,142 road accident deaths. Of these, 84,599 — or 48.3% — were two-wheeler users, making them the single largest category of fatalities on Indian roads.
A Quality Control Order issued by the central government in 2021 mandates that all helmets sold in India carry BIS certification and conform to the prescribed safety standard. Helmets that do not meet this requirement are illegal to manufacture, sell or import. Despite this, the association said non-certified products and helmets bearing fake ISI marks remain available through retail channels, including roadside outlets that operate with limited regulatory oversight.
The Union Department of Consumer Affairs has previously flagged the issue. It has called for action against manufacturers and retailers selling uncertified helmets, noting that such products can give riders a false sense of protection without meeting the structural requirements of the standard.
The association said tracing non-compliant products from the point of retail back to distributors and manufacturers would be central to effective enforcement. It called for coordinated inspections involving police, transport authorities and the Bureau of Indian Standards. Without such coordination, it said, action at the rider level alone would not address the underlying availability of substandard products in the market.
For riders in Bengaluru — including the growing number of delivery workers who spend extended hours on the road — the association called for enforcement that combines compliance checks with practical information on helmet selection, fit and strap use. It also sought awareness campaigns in Kannada and other widely spoken languages to help consumers distinguish certified helmets from non-compliant ones.
Karnataka recorded more than 6,000 two-wheeler fatalities in 2024, according to the association. It said the state had the opportunity to establish a model for supply chain enforcement that other states could follow, provided the current regulatory action moved beyond point-of-use checks to address production and distribution.