Ministry of Transport and Highways to set standards for EV battery

In view of the increasing incidents of fire in electrical vehicles, the government is going to set stringent standards for batteries in India. The Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways is set to issue new guidelines in this regard soon, which will be mandatory for all EV and battery manufacturers. It is worth noting that in four months this year, more than 38 EVs have reportedly caught fire.

Taking serious note of the EV fire, the Road, Transport and Highways Minister had ordered a probe into the matter, a senior official said. In view of the strict stand of the government, EV manufacturers have also recalled more than seven thousand vehicles, so that their shortcomings can be removed.

At the same time, after consultation with experts, the lack of standardization and quality of batteries for fire incidents was prominently highlighted. Following this, the ministry decided to issue new guidelines to standardize batteries and ensure their quality. According to a senior official, at present, the country does not have a robust system of testing to ensure the quality of the battery.

There are only two agencies called Automotive Research Association of India and International Center for Automotive Technology to do battery testing. Battery manufacturers send their batteries to one of these agencies for testing. But the manufacturing of the battery is also being done of the same quality, which was sent for test, there is no system to check it.

In the new guidelines, quality testing of batteries may be made mandatory at the manufacturing site to ensure that all batteries are produced as per the prescribed standard. Apart from this, there is a preparation to increase the standard level of battery testing. At present, there are two standards for testing batteries in the country. There is an AIS-048 test, in which the ability to withstand over charge, vibration and shock is checked. But this is an old standard.

AIS-156 is the new standard of battery testing in the world – which includes the ability to withstand over charge, vibration and shock, as well as mechanical drop, mechanical shock, fire resistance, external short circuit protection, over discharge protection of the battery. Tested on parameters like over temperature protection, thermal shock. In India too, many companies are making batteries according to the new standard. The government may now include in the guidelines to make all batteries compliant with AIS-156 standards. It will be mandatory for all battery manufacturers to follow the new guidelines.