Buying tyres? Soon, you can choose on the basis of rating

NEW DELHI: Soon you will be able to choose the type of fuel-efficient tyre for your vehicle. The Central government is working on a rating system, which will help customers evaluate what they want to buy.“This is one of the major transport initiatives. Soon, a standard and labelled programme for tyres to give consumers a choice to select more fuel-efficient tyres will be notified by the government,” said NK Singh, director of Petroleum Conservation Research Association (PCRA).

The project conceptualised in 2019 was supposed to get approval for implementation in January, but there has been a slight delay. Singh said two facilities are being readied where tyres will be tested before rating. “The one at Automobile Research Association of India in Pune is ready, while another at International Centre for Automotive Technology in Manesar is being readied.”

Initially, it will be optional for manufacturers to do tyre labelling, but later on it will become mandatory. The PCRA has launched ‘Saksham 2021’, a month-long campaign on fuel conservation, where events such as debates, cycle rallies, wall painting competitions, quizzes, training for LPG distributors, agricultural workshops for farmers and contests are being conducted across various centres by oil marketing companies. 

Singh informed that the motive of this year’s campaign is to spread awareness on key drivers that Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently mentioned, saying that collectively these would help India move towards cleaner energy.

These focus areas are moving towards a gas-based economy, greater reliance on domestic sources to drive bio-fuels, achieving renewable targets with the set deadlines, increased use of electric vehicles to decarbonise mobility, increased use of cleaner fuels like hydrogen and digital innovation across all energy systems.