The Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), headquartered in Pune, acts as a bridge between the government and the automotive industry by ensuring compliance with norms related to vehicle safety, emission control and technical quality.
Union Minister for Heavy Industries and Steel HD Kumaraswamy said that an Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) research center would be set up in Mandya at a cost of ₹500 crore.
At a press conference in Mysuru on Sunday, Mr. Kumaraswamy said the project required 100 acres of land and had written to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to seek allotment of land at the earliest.
The ARAI center would not only benefit Mandya and Mysuru region but act as a major booster for the entire automobile sector of the state.
Funds for the project are already allocated in the Union budget.
ARAI, a premier autonomous research and development organization functioning under the Ministry of Heavy Industries, Government of India, serves as the premier testing, certification and research body for the Indian automotive sector. The Pune-based ARAI acts as a bridge between the government and the automobile industry by ensuring compliance with norms related to vehicle safety, emission control and technical quality, the Union minister explained.
Mr. Kumaraswamy said that he wished to set up such a world-class center of quality and excellence in Mandya and said that the Additional Principal Secretary of the State Government’s Department of Revenue had written to the Deputy Commissioner of Mandya to identify a suitable land for the project.
He said the ARAI center is his answer to the criticism of some MLAs from Mandya who repeatedly asked him about what he brought to the district after winning the Lok Sabha elections from the Mandya Lok Sabha constituency.
No injustice to the state
Mr. Kumaraswamy claimed that there was no injustice to Karnataka in the Union Budget.
Referring to the Chief Minister’s remark that the state was given an “empty pot”, Mr Kumaraswamy asked how the Chief Minister, who is preparing to present his 17th Budget, could not understand the vision of such a “prospective” Union Budget.
Mr Kumaraswamy claimed that the Narendra Modi-led government at the Center was working effectively, saying trade deals had been signed with the European Union and the United States, while “increased business activity and higher exports” were benefiting the country’s farmers.
If there is any “empty pot”, it is from the state government to the people of the state, he said.
He alleged that the state government has failed to take advantage of more than 53 central schemes and is criticizing the Union budget only to cover up its own failures.
The Center provided funds, but the state failed to utilize them properly. According to the 16th Finance Commission, the state was to receive ₹50,000 crore, which has now been increased to ₹63,000 crore, he claimed.
He urged the state government, which always blames the Centre, to build good relations with the Union government and instead seek projects to benefit the state.
Besides former minister SR Mahesh, Mysuru MP Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar, JD (S) MLA GD Harish Gowda and BJP MLA Srivatsa were also present.
Published – 08 Feb 2026 20:29 IST
