No cell phone can be sold without a provision for panic button from 1st January 2017
Posted on: 26/Apr/2016 12:19:44 PM
Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has mentioned that from January 1, 2017, no cell phone can be sold without a provision for panic button and from January 1, 2018 mobile sets should have also GPS inbuilt.
With effect from January 1, 2017, no mobile phone handset manufactured company shall sell in India. Feature phones without the facility of panic button by pressing Numeric key 5 or Numeric key 9 to invoke emergency call.
Further, it said that no smartphone should be sold in India without the facility of emergency call button. This button should function in a manner that by pressing the same for long time to invoke emergency call or the use of existing power on or off button, when short pressed thrice in quick succession.
The concept of a device with panic button feature was floated after brutal gangrape of a paramedical student in Delhi.
The government has asked the companies to built at least 10,000 centres across the country to facilitate mobile phone users in upgrading their phones and adding the button.
