National Automotive Testing and R&D Infrastructure Project (NATRIP)

The National Automotive Testing and R & D Infrastructure Project is one of the remarkable initiatives of the Government of India in the automotive sector. The aim of this Project is to improve the core competencies n Automotive sector in India and facilitate seamless integration of Indian Automotive industry with the world as also to position the country prominently on the global automotive map. NATRIP aims to create a testing, validation and R&D infrastructure, had announced to invest Rs 1,718 crore for setting up of seven auto testing facilities at seven locations across India by 2011.NATRIP is forging ahead at a fast pace on schedule. Currently, tenders worth more than Rs 1642.97 Cr have been floated and tenders worth around Rs 1403.98 crore have been finalized [4] The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs in their meeting held on 28 April 2011 has approved the revised time lines and escalation of cost estimate of the project. Accordingly, now the revised cost estimates would be Rs. 2268.06 crore with project completion date in December 2012. The project involves collaboration among the Government of India, a number of State Governments and Indian Automotive Industry to create a state of the art Testing, Validation and R&D infrastructure in the country.

The vision of this project involves:

• deepen manufacturing
• encourage localized R&D
• boost exports
• and converge India’s unparalleled strengths in IT and electronics with automotive engineering sectors, to firmly place India in USD six trillion global automotive business. The project has set the above vision keeping in mind certain facts,
• By 2016, India is expected to be the third largest automotive market by volume in the world.
• Tractor sales in the country are expected to grow at CAGR of 8-9% in the next five years, upping India’s market potential for international brands. Two-wheeler production has grown from 8.5 Million units annually to 15.9 Million units in the last seven years. Significant opportunities exist in rural markets. India’s car market has the potential to grow to six Million-plus units annually by 2020
• India is currently the seventh largest producer in the world with an average annual production of 23.36 Million vehicles, of which 3.57 Million are exported.
• The Indian automobile market is estimated to become the third largest in the world by 2016 and will account for more than 5% of global vehicle sales.
• India is the second largest two-wheeler manufacturer, the largest motorcycle manufacturer and the fifth largest commercial vehicle manufacturer in the world.

The NATRIP initiative will help the industry in undertaking technology development at comparatively much lesser costs for the auto manufacturers when weighed against with the global automotive development costs. These facilities are setup by the government of India with a vision to provide the essential impetus to Indian auto industry which will help drive it to a position where it will cater not only to the ever-challenging and increasing indigenous demands but also it will be looked upon by the world to provide solutions for globally present challenges in the Auto Industry.