The Indian Government has started taking steps forward towards the use of electric mobility in the country. In a recent NITI Aayog meeting held between the India Auto Inc and government officials, the Indian 2-Wheeler brands expressed challenges that they have to face while selling electric vehicles in such a short timeframe, but the government is not looking forward to offering any kind of extension.
The AutoCar Professional has reported that the government is working on a draft proposal to mandate the sales of electric 3-wheelers and electric 2-wheelers (under 150cc) from 2023 and 2025 respectively. The OEMs in India have been given a timeline of two weeks to come up with a roadmap that enables sales of electric 3-wheeler sales by 2023, electric 2-wheelers by 2025, and electric 4-wheelers by 2030.
The automakers asked for a six month period to come out with a formalised plan, but in the meeting, NITI Aayog refused to provide an extended timeframe. Also, a PTI report says that if the auto industry fails to comply with the steps to be taken to address pollution issues, then the court will take relevant steps.
All these steps taken by the government shows that mass electric mobility may happen sooner than expected. A senior government official told PTI that without a policy and roadmap, the transition to EVs cannot happen. With 14 out of 15 most polluted cities in India, if the steps are not taken by the government and industry, then the Indian courts will step in. The country will not miss the electric mobility revolution, the official added.
There was some expectation that there will be a reduction in terms of taxes in EV sales, but as per the 35th Good and Services Tax committee meeting, there has been no change in the tax structure. The leading automakers are not happy with the timelines given by the government. While sharing their views they stated that these steps would derail the growth for the domestic auto industry, which is already tackling with the challenges of BSVI emission norms, safety updates, and the current industry slowdown.
On the other hand, the CEO and co-founder of Ather Energy said that the move to accelerate electric mobility in the country is a welcome move. He also said that the meeting was a commendable step taken by the NITI Aayog officials. Well, these steps taken by the Indian government shows that they are pretty serious on the subject of vehicle electrification.