NEW DELHI: The government seems to have dropped its plans to frame and implement a comprehensive electric vehicle (EV) policy, with Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari stating on Thursday that there was no “need” for an explicit policy. The government, according to Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant, is instead framing action plans to guide EV adoption.
Gadkari and Kant were addressing the press after launching two electric vehicle charging stations at Niti Aayog’s premises.
The decision to refrain from rolling out an EV policy will come as a considerable relief to automakers, many of whom have lobbied the government against such a move because an abrupt shift might catch the companies off balance. The decision to stick to action plans arises out of a desire to allow technology the freedom to evolve organically, according to Kant.
“Every day, new technology comes to the market. Technology is ahead of rules and regulations, we cannot bind it,” Kant elaborated, going on to point out that in India, rules and regulations become very hard to change once instituted. “The government will take a final call on whether a policy is required or not.”
But, policymakers prefer to push “whatever innovations” are introduced, “giving freedom for disruption”, he pointed out. “What we need is just action plans.” One such plan is currently in the works and “(this) will be given to all ministries and (the government) will monitor it,” Kant said.
The decision is being welcomed by automakers, many of whom were leery of introducing new products to India until the policy was released. The government has mooted an ambitious target to turn all cars electric by 2030, with Gadkari earlier stating that an EV policy was being formulated with the goal of achieving this target.
“Our view had been that existing schemes have to be continued for a while and benefits given to EVs. The idea to drop an explicit policy will allow the industry to remain flexible without tying it down to specific parameters,” a senior industry executive said.