THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Now, Kerala-made e-autos will criss-cross the streets across the state as the state-owned PSU Kerala Automobiles Ltd (KAL) has been granted permission by the Centre to manufacture electric autos as per the standards fixed by the electric vehicle policy of the state.
This is the first time a PSU has been given permission to manufacture e-vehicles as per the Central Motor Vehicle Act. The prototype of the e-auto has won 10-phase lab tests held at the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) under the Heavy Industry Ministry in Pune, as part of providing recognition to it.
KAL is planning to launch the e-autos under the brand name ‘Kerala Neem G’ in the forthcoming Onam season from its plant at Neyyattinkara in Thiruvananthapuram.
According to KAL managing director A Shajahan, the e-auto to be made under German technology will have a 2KV motor and an indigenously-built battery which can be fully recharged in 3.55 hours and which can run up to 100 km in single charging. The battery can be charged with a normal three pin. For just 50 paise, it can cover 1 km stretch, he said.
The e-auto will have only limited components when compared to petrol and diesel vehicles. Hence, there would not be any vibration while riding and it requires less maintenance when comparing to other vehicles. What is more, it offers a green ride to passengers at below affordable rates, he said. KAL plans to roll out 15,000 e-autos by next year. Since the state government’s e-vehicle policy says that permits will be given to e-autos only in Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Kozhikode in the future, it has a bright future in the state, he said.
With the present capacity, KAL can manufacture 7,000 e-autos annually and it would start sales franchises and service centres in every district with the launch of commercial production. The staff to be recruited for the service centres will be imparted training by KAL itself. The prototype of the e-auto was designed a year ago by the engineers and mangers of KAL. Later, all the parts, including electrical motors, controller, battery etc used for the manufacture of the prototype were subjected to various types of tests, including pollution and radiation, at SIAM.