Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari will launch the much-awaited Bharat New Car Assessment Programme (Bharat NCAP) on Tuesday, an official release from the ministry said.
Bharat NCAP is a significant step forward in the government’s commitment to improve road safety by raising the safety standards of motor vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes in India, the release said.
“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,” said the release by the ministry.
“Based on the performance of the car in the tests, car will be awarded star ratings for Adult Occupants (AOP) and Child Occupant (COP). Potential car customers can refer to these star ratings to compare the safety standards of different vehicles and accordingly make their purchase-decision,” it added.
It is expected that the demand for safer cars will increase, encouraging car manufacturers to comply with customer needs. With high safety standards, Indian cars will be able to compete better in the global market, increasing the export potential of car manufacturers in India.
The programme, to be launched tomorrow, is expected to develop a safety-sensitive car market in India.
In an interview with ANI in June, Nitin Gadkari, who has given high priority to reducing road accidents apart from his efforts at boosting road infrastructure, had said the government is spending about Rs 40,000 crore for removing “black spots” on roads.
He also talked about the positive ripple effect of investment in infrastructure saying it creates jobs.
As per official figures, about 1.54 lakh people lost their lives and 3.84 lakh were injured in 2021 in road accidents. In 2020, 1.31 lakh people lost lives and 3.49 lakh were injured in road mishaps.
He also cited a famous quote from former American president John F Kennedy in which he said “American roads are not good because America is rich, but America is rich because American roads are good.”
Gadkari had in September last year called for a reduction in road accidents and deaths by 50 per cent by 2024.
