IRF urges India to establish technical requirements for retro-fitment of CNG kits
Out of over 1.8 million CNG light vehicles which includes passenger vehicles and light commercial vehicles plying on the roads today, 60-65 per cent are those retrofitted in the aftermarket.
International Road Federation (IRF), a global body dedicated to road safety, has urged the government of India to adopt “technical requirements” for retro-fitment of CNG kits in cars here. The body said the authorities must issue these stringent technical requirements for CNG kits, including digital monitoring compliance, right away. According to an IANS report, IRF has urged the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) to immediately notify strict technical requirements in this regard.
In a statement to the press, K.K. Kapila, President Emeritus, International Road Federation, said, “Out of over 1.8 million CNG light vehicles which includes passenger vehicles and light commercial vehicles plying on the roads today, 60-65 per cent are those retrofitted in the aftermarket. Under the CNG retro-fitment technique that is followed, the gas tank, fuel lines, injection system and the electricals are retro-fitted on to a vehicle which wasn’t designed for CNG. The CNG kit manufactures supply ‘unapproved and uncertified CNG fuel kits’.”
Explaining IRF’s concerns, Kapial explained that retro-fitting a CNG kit means the addition of nearly 100 kg weight in the car. Not only that, it involves force fitting fuel lines and electrical wire connections even though the car’s design makes no accommodations for them. Furthermore, after the fitment, there is no testing to verify operation and performance of brakes. He added that no efforts are made to verify the retro-fitted CNG car’s crash test safety performance or that the fuel lines don’t run close to the battery. Kapila that the regulations for such kits must ensure that technical safety requirements such as these are met.
IRF added that the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways must ensure stringent enforcement of monitoring of fitment of CNG kits across India to ensure only approved components are used in retro fitments. “We need to put a foolproof regime in place or else we keep compromising safety at the cost of human lives, charred to death in the event of cars catching fire, in the absence of an appropriate kit and its retrofitting.”
