Hundreds of Mahindra Thar and Toyota Fortuner owners gathered in Daman on September 9 for a road-safety event that put responsibility ahead of speed and showmanship. The "Thar/Fortuner Sankalp Yatra", organised by the administration of the Union Territory of Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, saw SUV owners take a road-safety pledge administered by the District Collector.
A video shared by the Department of Information and Publicity of Daman on X showed rows of Thar and Fortuner SUVs gathered at a parking area, with participants holding yellow placards as part of the awareness campaign. The event carried messages such as "Raftaar nahi, sanskaar" and "Bhaigiri nahi, zimmedari", urging owners to see the power of their vehicles as something that comes with responsibility.
Thar and Fortuner owners take road-safety pledge
The campaign used simple, direct messages to challenge the idea that powerful SUVs should be associated with rash driving or showing off. Participants were seen carrying placards with messages including:
"Bhaigiri cool nahi hai"
"Jo ghar se nikla hai, wo ghar lautega - yahi meri asli shaan hai"
"Meri gaadi meri taakat hai, mera ghamand nahi"
"Sadak meri nahi, sabki hai"
The initiative also tied in with Mahindra's #TharKaMatlabZimmedari road-safety campaign, with Mahindra Group chairman Anand Mahindra tagged in the official post.
Take a look at the post here:
Large SUV gathering draws attention online
The sight of hundreds of Thar and Fortuner owners coming together for a road-safety campaign prompted plenty of discussion in the comments.
Some users suggested that technology could be used to identify traffic violations and argued that vehicles should be seized when motorists repeatedly break rules, including driving on footpaths, travelling on the wrong side or making dangerous turns.
Others called for stricter enforcement of driving licence requirements and tougher penalties for traffic violations, saying stronger action could discourage reckless driving.
Another set of comments urged authorities to consistently enforce the Motor Vehicles Act and punish violations according to the law.
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw praises Daman road-safety pledge
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, founder and Executive Chairperson of Biocon, also reacted to the campaign on X after sharing a video of the event.
"I think India needs this kind of 'schooling' more than another driving lesson! Commendable move by the Daman Collector. Making Thar and Fortuner owners take an oath to drive safely, sometimes a little public pledge may work better than a thousand road signs!" she wrote.
For an SUV community that often features in online conversations around driving behaviour, the Sankalp Yatra offered a fairly straightforward message: owning a powerful vehicle should come with an equally strong sense of responsibility on the road.
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