BAJA SAEINDIA 2007

The history of BAJA SAEINDIA is rich and interesting. It can be tracked down to when the Delhi College of Engineering students participated in the Mini Baja in 2002 and this was followed up by other persistent attempts by other institutions like VIT, SVNIT, and RV College of Engineering along with participation in other subsequent editions of the international event.

Acknowledging the efforts and interest shown by undergraduate students in the offroad vehicles, the Society of Automotive Engineers in India (SAEINDA) with Dr. K C Vora at the helm and Dr. Pawan Goenka, as the Chairman of the steering committee launched the BAJA SAEINDIA in 2007 with a vision to enhance the exposure, and to nurture the potential and budding skills of these curious and engineering minds. The Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) and NATRIP came forward to lend a helping hand to them through an earmarked zone at its upcoming proving grounds – NATRAX, situated at Pithampur, Indore.
Though the first event, a step in the unchartered territory of holding a mega-event of this scale, didn’t receive much participation, it initiated a wave in the nation, giving a pathway to the engineers to plan, execute and perform up to their best capabilities, which in a bigger view, helped to fuel the growth of Indian automotive industry.
This video is made for TV Show, based on the successful completion of first BAJA event in Dec 2007.


The events in succession improved, year after year, increasing the participating teams manifold(140 colleges in 2008-2009, 155 in 2010 to 400 in 2017). Another big leap for SAE BAJA event in India was eBAJA. Taking inspiration from Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam, electric version of SAE BAJA was launched in the year 2015. The main objective of eBAJA is to promote the electrical mobility and making the young engineers ready for the future of automobile industry.
Moving forward with the future of mobility and integrating new technologies into the automobile industry while keeping sustainability in mind, BAJA SAEINDIA has initiated two more event categories in 2024: aBAJA and hBAJA. aBAJA includes autonomous driving features in the vehicles, while hBAJA focuses on using greener energy sources such as CNG or hydrogen-powered cells. Union Minister of Transport, Shri Nitin Gadkari launched the first hBAJA buggy with HCNG fuel on 9th Jan 2025.

This will not only make participant students aware of current trends but also prepare them for the future of the industry.