Bharat NCAP

Why in News?

Recently, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has approved the draft GSR (General Statutory Rules) notification to introduce Bharat NCAP (New Car Assessment Programme).

• NCAP will be rolled out from 1st April 2023 and will mean auto manufacturers in India as well as importers will have the option of getting cars star rated within country.
• The USA was the first country to introduce a programme for testing the safety standards of a car through crash tests.

What is Bharat NCAP?

• About:
  • It is a new car safety assessment program which proposes a mechanism of awarding ‘Star Ratings’ to automobiles based upon their performance in crash tests.
  • Bharat NCAP standard is aligned with global benchmarks and it is beyond minimum regulatory requirements.
• Bharat NCAP Rating:
  • The proposed Bharat NCAP assessment will allocate Star Ratings from 1 to 5 stars.
  • The testing of vehicles for this programme will be carried out at testing agencies, with the necessary infrastructure.
• Applicability:
  • It will be applicable on type approved motor vehicles of category M1 with gross vehicle weight less than 3.5 tonnes, manufactured or imported in the country.
    • M1 category motor vehicles are used for the carriage of passengers, comprising eight seats, in addition to driver’s seat.

What is the Significance of Bharat NCAP?

• Empower Consumers to Make Informed Decisions:
  • The new regulations introduces the concept of safety rating of passenger cars and empowers consumers to take informed decisions.
• Increases Export-Worthiness:
  • Star Rating of Indian Cars based on Crash Tests will not only ensure structural and passenger safety in cars but also increase the export-worthiness of Indian automobiles.
• Make Automobile Industry Aatmanirbhar:
  • It will also prove to be a critical instrument in making our automobile industry Aatmanirbhar with the mission of making India the Number 1 automobile hub in the world.

What are the Challenges?

• A large scale testing will require bigger infrastructure and to implement it successfully and in an expedited manner, a huge budgetary support will be required.
• Major cities in India have dedicated hardly 6-10% (barring Delhi, which has allocated almost 20% to transport infrastructure) of their total land allocation to the construction of transport infrastructure, which has led to inadequate transport infrastructure in the cities with reference to the population and its requirements.

Way Forward

• The testing protocol should be aligned with Global Crash Test Protocols factoring in the existing Indian regulations, allowing OEMs (Original equipment manufacturer) to get their vehicles tested at India’s own in-house testing facilities.

Source: IE