Samsung Supports Ministry of Road Transport and Highways’ Road Safety Drive

Samsung India pledged its support to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways’ drive to reduce road accidents, especially those that happen due to irresponsible usage of mobile phones, including taking selfies on the road.

A nationwide campaign ‘Safe India’ to sensitize people about responsible use of mobile phones while on the road was unveiled. The new campaign film, #SafeIndia, seeks to make people aware about the dangers of taking a selfie while driving. This is the first of several initiatives that Samsung India will launch to educate people as part of the ‘Safe India’ campaign.

Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways and Shipping, said: “India has the highest number of road accidents, globally and accounts for more than 50 percent of total selfie deaths in the world. Irresponsible usage of mobile phone, including the new trend of taking selfies on the road, is one of the major causes of road accidents. Please use your mobile phone responsibly, do not risk your life on the road.”

In India, one road accident fatality happens every four minutes. Not only does the country have the highest number of road accidents globally, according to a report by Carnegie Mellon University, Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology, Delhi and National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli, the country accounts for over 50 percent of selfie-related fatalities in the world today.

State and local governments across the country are now concerned about the growing number of accidents triggered by people taking selfies while walking on the road, riding two-wheelers or driving cars.

Deepak Bhardwaj, VP, CSR, Samsung India, said: “As a market leader, it is our duty to step forward and support the government’s vision of reducing road accidents caused by irresponsible usage of mobile phones. Apart from this campaign video that will sensitize consumers, Samsung will take up this cause through a series of high-impact initiatives going forward under the ‘Safe India’ campaign. Samsung also offers safe mobility apps on its smartphones which encourage people to use them responsibly, while on the road."

Safe mobility apps from Samsung such as S bike mode, Car Mode and Walk Mode which promote responsible usage of mobile phones on the road are a part of Samsung’s ‘Make for India’ initiative. These apps have been developed at Samsung India’s R&D centres in Bangalore and Noida and are based on Indian consumer insights.

Samsung recently launched two campaigns—on Samsung Smart Class and Samsung Technical School—as part of its Citizenship initiatives. These campaigns highlighted social issues and have so far been viewed 36 million and 64 million times on YouTube, respectively.