About Bharat NCAP:
- The Bharat New Car Assessment Programme (Bharat NCAP) is an indigenous star-rating system for crash testing cars, under which vehicles will be assigned between one to five stars, indicating their safety in a collision.
- It is an ambitious joint project between the Government of India (GoI) and Global NCAP, the regulatory body behind the safety crash test ratings.
- Objective: To help consumers make an informed decision before purchasing a car, thereby spurring demand for safer cars.
- Under the Bharat NCAP, cars voluntarily nominated by automobile manufacturers will be crash tested as per protocols laid down in the Automotive Industry Standard (AIS) 197.
- Vehicles tested under the Bharat NCAP are evaluated across three critical safety domains: adult occupant protection, child occupant protection, and safety assist technologies.
- Applicability:
- Only right-hand drive passenger vehicles on sale in India and weighing less than 3,500 kg are eligible for consideration.
- Base variants of cars are to be tested, and ratings will be applicable for four years.
- Besides internal combustion engine (ICE) models, CNG cars as well as battery-powered electric vehicles are eligible to undergo the safety test.
- It is a voluntary programme under which the cost of the car for assessment for star rating and the cost of such assessment are borne by the respective vehicle manufacturer or importer.
- Bharat NCAP is overseen by the Ministry of Road Transport, but is an independent body.
- The current Bharat NCAP regulations remain valid until September 30, 2027, after which Bharat NCAP 2.0 is expected to be implemented by October 2027.
Bharat NCAP 2.0 Proposed Guidelines:
- It brings in fresh mandatory tests, revised scoring methods, and updated safety verticals.
- Notably, for the first time, vehicles will be assessed on vulnerable road user protection.
- The Bharat NCAP 2.0 proposal introduces a 100-point rating system across five pillars: Crash Protection, Vulnerable Road-User Protection, Safe Driving, Accident Avoidance, and Post-Crash Safety.
- The crash test will be expanded from two to five and will now have Male, female, and child dummies for testing.
- The cars will go through offset frontal impact, full-width frontal impact, side impact, pole side impact, and rear impact.
- Electronic stability control (ESC) and curtain airbags will be compulsory for any model seeking a star rating.
- Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) remains optional. Models with side-facing seats will not be eligible for a rating.
- From 2027-29, a 5-star rating will require 70 points, and this would rise to 80 points from 2029-31.
- Minimum scores will also apply across each pillar.
