With over 50 lakh drivers trained, Maruti Suzuki pledges to strengthen Road safety

Maruti Suzuki India Limited has achieved the milestone of providing state-of-the-art driving training to 50 lakh aspirants, cumulatively. The milestone includes cumulative figures of the candidates being trained in learner, refresher and evaluation courses at its network of driving training facilities- Maruti Suzuki Driving Schools (MDS) and Institutes of Driving and Traffic Research (IDTR).

Established with an aim to provide best-in-class facilities for driving training and make Indian roads safer, these training facilities cater to "learner" as well as existing drivers for private and commercial vehicles.

Road Safety lies at the heart of Maruti's CSR initiatives and the company has undertaken social initiatives targeting different aspects of road safety management and driving training. While the Maruti Driving Schools are managed by the Company's dealers, the IDTRs are managed by the Company in partnership with the respective State governments. Through these initiatives, the company has introduced global standards for quality driving training, through a scientifically designed curriculum consisting of theory as well as practical training.

Maruti Suzuki driving training initiative was started in 2000 and the countrywide Driving Training network of Maruti Suzuki has grown over the years to reach 480 Maruti Driving Schools and 07 IDTRs, presently.

Mr Ajay Kumar Tomer, Executive Advisor, CSR, Maruti Suzuki India Limited, said, "The milestone of 50 lakh trainees from Maruti Suzuki driving institutes is a testament of our commitment to road safety. Promoting safe driving is our collective social responsibility and we urge every responsible citizen to learn scientific way of driving and focus on technical and behavioral."

He added, "With the network of training facilities, Maruti Suzuki has introduced global levels of quality training for driving to make the roads safer across the country."

Key Maruti Suzuki's initiatives for making roads safer are:-

1) Maruti Suzuki Driving Schools (MDS):

MDS are neighbourhood driving schools set up in partnership with Maruti Suzuki's dealer partners. The driving schools are equipped with advanced driving simulators to create on-road driving situations and offer a mix of classroom and practical training by trained instructors, including women. Almost 50 per cent of those enrolled at MDS are women.

The Company encourages people to take up driving as a profession through social programs like Unnati where women are imparted training in etiquettes and customer relations, besides building the skill of safe driving.

2) Institute of Driving and Traffic Research (IDTR):

Maruti Suzuki has set up IDTRs in collaboration with state governments. Equipped with scientifically engineered training and testing tracks of international standards, state-of-the-art driving simulators and well maintained vehicles, these IDTRs follow a structured training content including classroom and practical sessions. The course is imparted by well qualified instructors.

Maruti Suzuki manages 7 IDTRs (Two each in Haryana, and Delhi NCR, one each in Uttarakhand, Gujarat and Bihar). While the MDS focuses on personal car driving, the IDTR additionally trains drivers for commercial driving including trucks, buses and other heavy motor vehicles and taxi, three-wheelers & forklifts.

AGIDTTR Vadodara, a successful model of road safety with jobs for underprivileged:

The Company is working closely with the Ministry of Tribal Development in Gujarat to train tribal youth in safe driving. Besides road safety, this residential IDTR facility near Vadodara approaches driving also as an employment opportunity. In addition to good quality driving training, students also receive training in personality, hygiene, courtesy and communication.

Over 15,000 young tribal people, mostly landless farm workers and unskilled construction workers, have been trained, groomed and employed. For the individuals, the driving training at AGIDTTR has brought an opportunity to join the mainstream economy of the country and has effectively transformed the lives of their families.