All public transport vehicles in cities including buses and autos will soon need to have a GPS on board and the government hopes to cover all Indian cities within two years. The Ministry of Information Technology is also working on a proposal to introduce mandatory SOS Alert buttons or app in all new handsets sold in India. The mandatory GPS implementation is part of a proposal for setting up a Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) platform with National Vehicle Security and Tracking System at the national level and City Command and Control Centre at the state level, that is in the process of approval. Once set up, CAD will be able to see the location of public transport vehicles in an area and issue a dispatch if a woman presses the SOS button on her phone. It needs to be noted that CAD will also be integrated into the Dial 100 system that exists as of now. This work is being undertaken as part of the Rs 1404.68 crore Nirbhaya Fund which the Union Cabinet approved in January this year, to reduce violence against women in cities. A part of the fund will also be used to set up video surveillance in buses and metros, but it's not clear how the government plans to handle the logistics. CAD alone will cost Rs 321.69 crore, which includes a one time implementation cost of Rs 204.25 crore, operational cost for five years of Rs 102.12 crore and expenses for the central monitoring and evaluation project management unit of approximately Rs 15.32 crore. Implementation: The project…
