There is a lot of anticipation and speculation about the new safety standards for cars in India, Bharat NCAP. The recent launch of the India NCAP website included crash test images of two flagship Indian cars, the Kia Sonet and the Tata Punch, confirming their assessment under the new safety standard. However, now a recent report has confirmed that the Tata Harrier has the distinction of being the first domestically made passenger car to undergo India NCAP crash tests.

According to the report, Tata Harrier has completed a series of crash tests conducted by India NCAP, a program launched in August 2023. The safety rating resulting from these tests will be disclosed within the next 3-4 weeks. Notably, both the new Tata Harrier and Tata Safari received an impressive five-star rating from Global NCAP when they were launched in October 2023.

The updated Tata Harrier features several exterior design enhancements, an overhauled cabin layout with added features and an emphasis on safety with standard features like six airbags and ADAS in the top-spec variants. Despite these updates, the Harrier has retained its mechanical configuration, continuing to offer the 2.0-litre 170 PS diesel engine with options of 6-speed manual and 6-speed automatic transmissions.

Tata Motors took a lead role by becoming the first automaker to subject a car to the India NCAP crash test rating. Following this, other major automakers such as Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai, Mahindra and Kia have started submitting their models for evaluation by India NCAP. The collective support from all car manufacturers and automotive brands operating in India underlines the recognition that conducting vehicle tests within the country as compared to overseas for Global NCAP proves to be a more cost-effective approach.

Launched in August 2023, India NCAP is a standardized safety program launched by the Central Government of India. Its primary objective is to provide safety ratings to passenger cars sold in the country through comprehensive crash tests. The introduction of India NCAP in India led to Global NCAP discontinuing its "Safe Cars for India initiative, which explicitly called for the abolition of crash tests for Indian cars. The central government collaborates with the Central Institute of Road Transport (CIRT) in Pune to conduct India NCAP crash tests on cars sold in India.