Road Transport & Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on Tuesday launched the much-awaited Bharat New Car Assessment Programme (BNCAP), which aims to enhance road safety measures by raising the safety standards in motor vehicles. 

The Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) has approved the notification for Bharat NCAP, which will be operational from October 1, 2023. The standard is on a voluntary basis. 

The programme aims to provide a tool to the car customers to make a comparative assessment of crash safety of motor vehicles available in the market. Under this programme, car manufacturers can voluntarily offer their cars tested as per Automotive Industry Standard (AIS) 197, the Ministry said.

After launching India’s first car safety assessment ratings programme, Gadkari said that this is crucial to check the number of road accident fatalities in the country. 

“Launched the Bharat New Car Assessment Program (BHARAT NCAP) in New Delhi, aiming to enhance road safety by elevating vehicle safety standards for up to 3.5-tonne vehicles in India. This is a landmark step towards empowering our consumers for being able to make a better choice for buying safer cars,” he added.

Gadkari emphasised that Bharat NCAP will also greatly push the safety and quality of the vehicles in India, while simultaneously promoting a healthy competition among OEMs to manufacture safer vehicles.

“The new safety regime under BHARAT NCAP and AIS-197 is a mutual win-win for manufacturers and consumers and an instrumental step towards safeguarding lives of our citizens and making our Automobile Industry the number one auto manufacturing hub in the world,” the Minister said.

Speaking at the launch event, SIAM President Vinod Aggarwal said Bharat NCAP is a timely and apt move as the safety star rating of new passenger vehicles will go a long way in educating customers in making informed purchase decisions, which would now be very strongly influenced by the safety parameters of the vehicle.

“A standardised evaluation method will also help customers compare safety ratings of different cars and help them choose an appropriate model. We are now happy to see that the Bharat NCAP protocol developed is at par with Global NCAP norms and would like to compliment the government for the launch of the safety rating programme. This program will eventually help market forces push vehicle manufacturers to offer safer vehicles, with potential of bringing everlasting change in the attitude of customers during the purchase,” he added.

Industry welcomes Bharat NCAP

Welcoming the development, Maruti Suzuki’s Executive Officer for Corporate Affairs Rahul Bharti said any car that is launched in India follows the mandatory safety standards set by the government and is therefore safe. For consumers seeking extra safety or manufacturers offering extra safety features the Bharat NCAP system is an authentic and objective rating system to empower the customer to make an informed choice.

“Maruti Suzuki welcomes this initiative of the government and will offer at least 3 models for BNCAP testing in the first lot itself. At the same time, we would request all users to fasten seatbelts whether in the front or rear seats as that is the most critical factor in keeping safe,” he added.

Hyundai Motor India MD & CEO Unsoo Kim said, “We welcome the BNCAP safety initiative by the government of India and believe this effort will raise safety standards, empower consumers with vital information, and make Indian roads safer for all. At Hyundai Motor India, we remain committed to delivering the highest safety standards across our entire product range.”

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