The Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari approved the draft notification to introduce Bharat-NCAP or Bharat New Car Assessment Program on Friday. Cars will be given star ratings by factoring in their performance in crash tests. Gadkari confirmed the development in a series of tweets.
The Union Minister further explained that Bharat-NCAP will be a consumer-centric platform that will give customers the option to choose safer cars based on star ratings, promote healthy competition among automakers in India and incorporate higher safety levels in new car models with regard to various parameters.
He said that the star rating of Indian cars based on crash tests is crucial not only to ensure structural and passenger safety in cars, but also to increase the export-worthiness of Indian automobiles. Gadkari stated that Bharat-NCAP's testing protocol is aligned to global crash test protocols and will allow automakers to test vehicles at India's own in-house testing facilities. He said that this will prove crucial in making the Indian automobile industry 'aatmanirbhar' or self-reliant.