The National Automotive Testing and R&D Infrastructure Project (NATRiP), which envisages setting up testing and research centres at automotive hubs in the country, hopes to complete its initiatives in Chennai and Indore by the end of next year.
The main objective of NATRiP is to create automotive testing and validation infrastructure to usher in global vehicular safety, emission and performance standards.
Chennai centre
The 300-acre facility in Oragadam, near Chennai will house full-fledged testing and homologation centre. “This will be completed by end of next year and serve the auto industry in and around Chennai and also create employment,” said Mr S. Sundareshan, Secretary, Ministry of Heavy Industries.
A similar project is also being undertaken in Indore and will be ready by December 2012.
Upgrades
The facilities in Pune and Manesar are also being upgraded. The investment on the project is around Rs 2,200 crore.
Mr Sundareshan was in the city to inaugurate a vehicle recycling facility at the Oragadam centre. The recycling centre is executed by NATRiP in collaboration with the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM).
The auto industry is donating 100 used two-wheelers and 25 cars to help start the centre, which will act as a demo facility to showcase scientific recycling techniques.
Scrapped vehicles are cut and sold as scrap by low-tech units in the unorganised sector using crude polluting techniques. Scientific recycling reduces global warming and greenhouse gases, said Captain N. S. Mohan Ram, Chairman, SIAM. About 7-10 per cent of the cost of vehicle can be recovered through modern techniques, he said.
With efficient recycling, India can recover over 1.5 million tonnes of steel scrap, 1,80,000 tonnes of aluminium scrap and 75,000 tonnes each of recoverable plastic and rubber by 2020.
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