Exclusive: ARAI to Also Test Drones Now, Working on New Diversification Roadmap

Not only automobiles, the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) will also test drones now. It has recently secured Government recognition to test and certify drones. In a rapidly evolving and increasingly technology intensive transportation and mobility landscape, drone technology is among the emerging options for fast and sustainable logistics and mobility solutions.

“This is another area we are slowly diversifying into because we see that it is a need. So, now we are authorised for it, and we are slowly going to take up the certification part,” Dr. Reji Mathai, Director, ARAI tells Acko Drive. Setting up infrastructure for drone development is also being considered.

Diversification moves

Building capability to test, and later certify drones is also a reflection of ARAI’s need to evolve as an R&D organisation, which has been playing a crucial role in vehicle engineering, homologation and certification, and developing industry standards over the past sixty years. 2026 is the organisation’s diamond jubilee year, and also an apt juncture to also venture into new areas.

“We are very seriously looking into diversifying into more areas,” says Dr. Mathai. He adds that with the manpower available within ARAI, the organisation can “diversify very fast”. ARAI, which comes under the Ministry of Heavy Industries – the automotive industry’s parent ministry – is currently discussing and deliberating the organisation’s roadmap for the next two years. 

While ARAI is known more for its certification and homologation competence, it will be “dwelling more into research and development”, and work more with the research ecosystem to strengthen itself and grow further. 

Engaging with startup ecosystem     

“The other area is the startups, or the micro and small enterprises, how they can be connected and how they can be given that confidence that yes, you can get through into the first or the second stage,” says Dr. Mathai.

In the current disruptive era, startups are increasingly coming up with innovations and new solutions in the mobility space also. ARAI has a Section 8 company called Advance Mobility Transformation & Innovation Foundation (AMTIF), which works to foster innovation, support startups by incubating them, and also supports development of new technologies.

Capacity augmentation

Simultaneously with the diversification planning, ARAI is augmenting its testing and validation infrastructure to meet the growing needs of automotive industry players. At the 19th edition of its biennial Symposium of International Automotive Technology (SIAT) held last week, three key projects – an Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) Smart City Test Track, a cylinder testing facility, and a High Energy Impact Test Facility got inaugurated at the hands of the Union Minister for Heavy Industries H D Kumaraswamy. 

ARAI is also among the three beneficiaries (International Centre for Automotive Technology, Global Automotive Research Centre are the other two)  of a cumulative Government grant of ₹780 crore, under the PM E-Drive scheme to strengthen EV testing and validating infrastructure in the country. For example, all three centres are setting up chassis dynamometers for EV testing.    

ARAI has an outlay of ₹200 crore for the next financial year to be invested in multiple projects. As India’s premier automotive research and development organisation looks to add new dimensions in terms of capabilities and get into new areas, there may be a case for ARAI to also rename itself in the future. “Maybe in the long run, we may have to redefine ourselves as Mobility Research Association of India, or something like that,” quips Dr. Mathai.