rajendra petkar president and chief technology officer at tata motors2020 has been a challenging year due to the unpredictable events whose impact will be felt in years to come covid19 pandemic has led to an unprecedented disruption which will not only bear grave economic implications but also redefine the social fabric of society globally the uncertainty of what the future holds has had a substantial impact on the mental health of many individuals the situation has led to an alteration in consumer behavior that is now fueled by anxiety fear and health concerns one of them has been a strong reluctance to use public transport in the near future which is likely to influence the demand for personal mobility as countries across the world gradually unlock there is an increasing trend on the number of singleoccupancy vehicles plying on the roads a survey by capgemini in may 2020 suggests that more than 50 percent of consumers in india are considering purchasing a car this year a number far higher than the global average of 35 percent the industrywide september sales figures are a testament to this sentiment such a noteworthy increase in the number of vehicles on indian roads is likely to result in more accidents and road fatalities india ranks number 1 with the highest number of fatalities due to road accidents with an occurrence of one accident per minute in 2018 alone the ministry of road transport reported a 151 lakh deaths the highest the country has ever witnessed the primary causes of road accidents in india are a result of human error poor infrastructure and reckless driving studies show that the heightened anxieties caused by the pandemic are likely to amplify irrational road behavior the truck drivers who are the lifeline of indias logistics industry are among the most vulnerable due to their stressful lifestyle that has been aggravated by strained supply lines and increased demand owing to the current scenario as per the indian economic survey 20182019 158 of the vehicles involved in roadaccident fatalities is due to the driver being overworked or sleepdeprived this number is set to increase making automotive safety paramount understanding the severity and the need of safety features in a car the government has been pushing for mandating of safety norms such as airbags antilock braking system abs speed alert system reverse parking sensors driver and front passenger seatbelt reminder manual override for the central locking system crash safety norms pedestrian protection etc with these safety standards being implemented stakeholders across the automobile value chain are constantly upgrading their offerings to provide failsafe safety technologiesautomakers are using this opportunity to transcend beyond compliance of mere safety regulations and use digital technology design and ergonomics to enhance vehicular safety india now has cars with global ncap 4 and 5star safety ratings and we are witnessing this trend across all segments keeping up with the pace of the growing popularity of electric mobility automakers are striving to provide its customers with