New facilities for testing cars and other vehicles are being prepared at the Global Automotive Research Center i.e. GARC at Oragadam, Chennai. This work is being done under PM E-DRIVE scheme of Govt. With the help of new facilities, electric cars, their batteries, car safety and new auto technologies can be better tested.

What does GARC do?

GARC works under the National Automotive Board of the Ministry of Heavy Industries. This is a government approved testing center. Here the car and its parts are checked. Apart from this, many other works like research on new technology, approval of cars and safety tests are also done.

The government gave more than ₹221 crore

Government has provided ₹221.13 crore for new testing facilities of GARC. Many new testing elements are being purchased with this money. Most of the elements have also been ordered and their installation has started. The government has budgeted a total of ₹10,900 crore for the PM E-DRIVE scheme. In which ₹780 crore has been kept for improving the testing center. The scheme will run till 31 March 2028.

Safety of EVs and cars will also be examined

After the new facilities, electric cars and their batteries can be tested at GARC. New systems are being installed to check battery safety. Apart from this, it will also be checked whether the electronic systems in the electric car interfere with each other.

A new facility is also being prepared at GARC for testing large commercial vehicles i.e. trucks and buses. Labs that test car engines and power systems are also being improved.

ADAS and crash testing will also be better

The new features include several elements to test the safety of the car. Dummies used in crash tests and equipment to test dummies are also being installed.

ADAS will also be tested. ADAS is a technology that assists the driver while driving a car. Like identifying any vehicle or obstacle ahead. New and better facilities are also being prepared for testing of auto parts.

The new system will capture the crash test on camera

A special high-speed camera system is also being installed at GARC. It will have a 4K camera, which can record up to 750 photos per second. The system can record up to 3,000 frames per second in Full HD. Simply put, this camera will be able to record even the smallest movement of the car during a crash test.

It will be used in front, side and rear crash tests of the car. This shows how much the car rolled during the crash, the impact on the occupants and how quickly the airbags deployed. With the help of this video, engineers can better understand the safety of the car.

Car testing will be encouraged in the country

These upgrades being done at GARC under PM e-Drive will help improve testing of electric cars, batteries, safety systems, ADAS and large commercial vehicles.

After the new facilities, more types of tests related to car safety and new auto technology will be conducted at GARC. This will also enhance GARC’s capacity for vehicle testing and research in India.

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