Horn OK Please

'Horn OK please' is a phrase commonly painted on commercial vehicles like trucks, buses or local taxis in India.

The purpose of the phrase is to alert a driver of a vehicle approaching from behind to sound his/her horn in case they wish to overtake.

Origin

The origin of this phrase is unknown. Also, there is no official significance with respect to Indian traffic regulations. No rules in India mandate or suggest the use of such a "slogan" on a vehicle. Still tens of thousands^{[citation needed]} of vehicles are decorated with the phrase Horn OK please.

One theory says that the term bears its roots in the second world war where the trucks were run on kerosene engines. Kerosene, being highly unstable in nature, would cause the trucks to explode at the slightest accident. Hence a warning would be painted on the back saying "Horn Please,On Kerosene". Gradually this became a norm and is still seen on most trucks even today.^{[citation needed]}

Another reason given for how this sign originated is that most trucks in India are manufactured by TATA. In India, when wishing someone goodbye, one commonly says, "OK TATA!", where TATA means goodbye. Since most trucks had the TATA logo on them, truck owners often painted the word OK above it. The HORN PLEASE phrase surrounds the OK TATA vertical combination. Thus, a person reading just the first line would read, "HORN OK PLEASE".^{[citation needed]}

Another theory goes, that The Tata Oil Mills co.Ltd.(TOMCO), unveiled an economy detergent powder called OK. This brand had a symbol in a shape of a lotus flower. To market this detergent better, it is believed that the symbols were painted on trucks and lorries. Since the trucks had HORN PLEASE already painted on the left and right edges of the back flap, the lotus flower symbol and OK were painted in the center of the flap. That is what got OK in between HORN PLEASE, making it HORN OK PLEASE. Moving with time, it became a tradition for truck drivers and owners to paint their trucks in such a fashion.^{[citation needed]}

With a more careful inspection^{[citation needed]} of the driving culture in India and around the globe, it has been noticed that 'HORN OK PLEASE' in the given form resembles three modes in which a vehicle following another vehicle should be in.

• The first mode is that of HORN: if the following vehicle wants to overtake a vehicle ahead of it from the left side, then the horn should be blown. This way the vehicle leading is advised of the vehicle passing, and does not make a sudden left turn.
• The second mode is that of OK: if the following vehicle is exactly behind the leading vehicle, the leading vehicle is OK with this.
• The third mode is that of PLEASE: if the following vehicle wishes to overtake on the right side, it may do so without blowing its horn--effectively, the leading vehicle is saying, "Please proceed."

Other countries

In Pakistan too, instructions are used in a similar manner, but with rather different styles and phrases. Like the phrase Horn day kar paas karein written in Urdu, often found behind heavy vehicles, trucks, and trailers traveling on long routes or highways.

Sixty years back trucks used to run on Petrol, unlike diesel fuel. When there was a shortage of Petrol during the days of war, kerosene fuel was used as a substitute. But those trucks that ran on Kerosene has to be indicated as On Kerosene

See also

• Autorickshaw
• Indian English