“This is a long pending step and will be introduced in Indian vehicles for the first time. The idea is to create a safe and designated space for children in cars. Across Europe and USA, besides other countries like Australia, ‘Child Restraint Systems’ (CRS) is mandatory in all vehicles. So the ministry has decided it’s time for such an initiative to be taken in India as well,” said a top official.

“The planned implentation schedule is two years for new car models and three years for existing models. This will also be introduced for commercial goods vehicles and passenger buses,” he added.

The Central Motor Vehicle Rules-Technical Standing Committee is formulating automotive industry standards to in order to make CRS compulsory. The ministry held a high-level meeting in this connection earlier this week.

It is learnt that automobile manufacturers have agreed on the need for CRS in passenger cars. There is, however, some debate over who should bear the cost — the automaker or the buyer.