All You Need to Know About Bharat NCAP: India’s Own Crash Safety Test

Gone are the days when car manufacturers in India had to indulge in an expensive and time-consuming process of exporting some of their most popular models for crash testing abroad. From October 1, carmakers can volunteer to get their cars crash-tested here in India under an indigenous crash testing program called the Bharat New Car Assessment Program or the BNCAP. A big step towards raising the safety standards of cars in India, here’s all you need to know about Bharat NCAP.

What is Bharat NCAP

The Bharat New Car Assessment Program or the BNCAP is India’s very own car crash testing program. The BNCAP is modelled along the lines of the Global New Car Assessment Program (GNCAP).

For those interested, the GNCAP is a UK-based charity project Towards Zero Foundation to promote the global adoption of the United Nations’ vehicle safety standards.

The BNCAP will apply to the M1 category of passenger cars having a gross weight of up to 3,500 kg, carrying up to eight passengers in addition to the driver. The program will test both indigenously manufactured as well as imported cars. In addition to combustion engine cars, the Bharat NCAP will also crash test electric and CNG cars. 

The Bharat New Car Assessment Program aims to raise the safety standard of cars produced in India to ensure fewer casualties and injuries. Moreover, with India having its very own crash-testing program, the cost of crash-testing vehicles will also be substantially reduced by more than 70%.

When was Bharat NCAP implemented?

Officially launched by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari alongside representatives of the Global NCAP on August 22, 2023, the Bharat New Car Assessment Program came into force with effect from 1st October 2023. With this, India proudly became the fifth global nation to have its very own crash testing program. Cars tested under Bharat NCAP will have the BNCAP logo along with a sticker showcasing their crash test rating. 

What are the testing procedures in Bharat NCAP?

The BNCAP crash testing program will be based on the Automotive Industry Standard 197, which lays down comprehensive guidelines and testing protocols. 

Under the Bharat NCAP, a vehicle will be selected by the authority for testing by any one of the following methods:

1. Voluntary submission for assessment by OEM

2. Selection of a “popular car model” with sales of at least 30,000 units since its introduction in the previous calendar year

3. Selection of a model based on the recommendation of the MoRTH based on market feedback and analysis

Like GNCAP, the BNCAP crash test will also award star ratings between 1 and 5 stars. The crash evaluation of a vehicle will be based on three parameters: Adult Occupant Protection (AOP), Child Occupant Protection (COP) and Onboard Safety Assist Technologies.

These parameters will be tested through three kinds of tests including:

• Frontal impact test at 64 km/h with two adult dummies in the front and two child dummies in the second-row seating position.

• Side impact test at 50 km/h with one adult dummy in the front driving position and two child dummies in the second-row seating position.

• Side pole impact test at 29 km/h with one adult dummy in the front driving position.

Based on the vehicle’s performance on the tests mentioned above, a separate star rating will be awarded for Adult occupants and Child Occupants.

How are cars rated for safety in Bharat NCAP?

With BNCAP in place, tested vehicle models will be awarded a star safety rating that will showcase the level of safety standards provided by the vehicle. The ratings, as mentioned, will be based on the vehicle’s performance on Adult Occupant Protection (AOP), Child Occupant Protection (COP) and Onboard Safety Assist Technologies.

The distribution of assessment points in various tests under BNCAP and the minimum qualifying points for star rating in both AOP and COP are as follows:

Distribution of Assessment Points
Group	Description of Test	Assessment Points	Maximum Assessment Points
Adult Occupant Protection	Front Impact Test	16	32
	Side Impact Test	16
	Pole Impact Test	Qualifier for 5-Star Rating
Child Occupant Protection	Front Impact Test	16	49
	Side Impact Test	8
	CRS Installation Checks	12
	Vehicle-Based Assessments	13

Star Rating	Minimum Score Adult Occupant Protection (Front Impact + Side Impact)	Child Occupant Protection
5 Star	27	41
4 Star	22	35
3 Star	16	24
2 Star	10	18
1 Star	4	9

In addition to scores obtained by a vehicle in the above-mentioned tests, cars will also be tested for onboard Safety Assist Technologies that will act as qualifiers for the requisite star ratings. The onboard Safety Assist Technologies that will be taken into account for scoring will be

• Electronic Stability Control: A compulsory inclusion for a car to score 3 or more stars.

• Seat Belt Reminder: A compulsory inclusion for a car to score 3/4/5 stars. Not Compulsory for a 1/2 star rating.

• Pedestrian Protection: Compulsory for all cars.

• Side Head Protection System: Compulsory installation of side head protection system to qualify for side impact testing and a 5-star rating. Optional installation in at least one variant of the model for cars manufactured in the year 2022/2023, and compulsory installation for models manufactured in 2024/2025 to qualify for side impact testing and a 4-star rating. Compulsory installation for models manufactured in 2024/2025 to qualify for side impact testing and a 3-star rating. 

How is a Car Tested for a Bharat NCAP Safety Rating?

Since October 1st, 2023, several cars have been tested under the Bharat New Car Assessment Program. Once a car is taken up for testing, the Bharat NCAP authority will visit the manufacturing plant and will randomly select the base variant for testing.

Once selected, the said model will then be dispatched to the BNCAP testing facility, where the vehicle will be crash tested with OEM representatives and BNCAP officials witnessing the entire process.

The crash results will then be compiled and intimated to the carmaker, which will then be followed by the BNCAP standing committee’s final approval. Once approved the results will be published by BNCAP on its official website and a crash test certificate will be issued by the Central Institute of Road Transport (CIRT). Since the process has been set in motion, the Bharat NCAP website is now a one-stop destination for consumers to check the safety ratings of their favourite cars.

Differences between Global NCAP and Bharat NCAP

The obvious difference is that the Bharat NCAP test will take cars available in India for the crash test, whereas the Global NCAP will accommodate cars sold all over the world for the same. Apart from that, there are three main differences between Global NCAP and Bharat NCAP.

Criteria	Bharat NCAP	Global NCAP
Organization Framework	Government-Run	Independent
Maximum Frontal Crash Points	16	16
Maximum Side Impact Points	16	16
Maximum Seatbelt Reminder Points	–	2
Minimum Adult Protection Points Needed For a 5-Star Rating	27	34
Minimum Child Protection Points Needed For a 5-Star Rating	41	46
Car Categories Tested	M1	M1, M2, M3, N1, N2, N3

• Safety Rating Categories– For adult occupant protection, a vehicle needs a minimum of 34 points in Global NCAP to get a 5-star safety rating, which includes 16 points for the front crash test, 16 for the side impact, and 2 points for seatbelt reminders. In Bharat NCAP, a vehicle needs a minimum of 27 points out of 32 for adult safety and 41 points out of 49 for child safety to get a 5-star rating. Also, Bharat NCAP gives a unified rating for Adult and Child protection combined, unlike separate ratings given by Global NCAP. 
• Car Categories Tested– Bharat NCAP tests M1 category passenger cars with a gross weight of up to 3,500 kg and seating for up to eight passengers. Global NCAP tests different categories of vehicles including M1, M2, and M3 passenger vehicles as well as N1, N2, and N3 goods vehicles.
• Collaboratory Framework– The Global NCAP is an independent organization that simply deals with the safety capabilities of different types of cars. The Bharat NCAP, on the other hand, is closely linked to government bodies such as the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways in India. This allows the BNCAP to influence policy decisions and encourage the implementation of stricter safety standards in the Indian automotive industry.

The GNCAP may be the main source of derivation or inspiration for the Bharat NCAP. Yet, as you can see, the two are not the same. Bharat NCAP took the safety parameters and assessment system that GNCAP uses and customised it to better suit the Indian automotive market. This allows the Bharat NCAP to provide accurate results for the types of cars we see most often on the roads.

Similarities between Global NCAP and Bharat NCAP

The Global and Bharat NCAP have plenty of similarities since both work with a similar goal in mind.

• Global NCAP and Bharat NCAP both have a set of standardized crash tests that simulate real-world accidents. 
• The two programmes assess and evaluate the test to give points to the car’s safety performance. 
• All cars go through a specific set amount of speeds for the crash test in both NCAP programs (though the speeds are different for the two). This makes sure all cars are on equal grounds, to begin with.
• Both NCAP programmes also divide score points between frontal and side-impact tests, and denote a star rating between 1 and 5 according to the points scored in these two categories. 
• When it comes to child occupants, both programmes have identical scoring and evaluation methods to determine the car’s safety ratings for a child.

Conclusion

The emergence of Bharat NCAP is likely to be a pivotal point in the Indian automotive industry. This government-run crash-testing program may encourage customers to consider safer cars for their next purchase thanks to readily available crash-test data of these cars. The Bharat NCAP is also encouraging car manufacturers to give safety and protection a priority in their current and upcoming fleet of vehicles. 

With all these plans in motion, it can perhaps lead to a decrease in the total number of road accidents and fatal road injuries in India.

FAQs about Bharat NCAP