BENGALURU: “To encourage electric mobility, the state government has planned to develop an electric vehicle cluster soon,” said Large and Medium Scale Industries Minister Jagadish Shettar.At a workshop and exhibition on e-mobility at Bharat Scouts and Guides office premises in the city on Thursday, he said that the government was also focussing on getting local manufacturers for electric vehicle batteries.
He said, “Batteries comprise of 30 percent of the cost of an electric vehicle (EV). It is one of the most expensive components in the entire unit. EVs will become affordable if the cost of the battery goes down. So, the state government’s priority is to initiate local manufacturing of EV batteries. We will also develop an EV cluster in the state and keep a dedicated fund for e-mobility and manufacturing sector.”
He further added that Karnataka is among the first ten Indian states to have taken the lead on forming a separate EV policy in 2017. “The state aims to become an EV manufacturing hub. The state government will also be integrating EVs in public transport. Under the centre’s FAME India II scheme, the State will get 400 e-buses, of which 300 will be leased by BMTC. Government has decided to hire 6,000 more buses for BMTC of which 50% will be electric,” he stated.
He added that an ecosystem, conducive to e-mobility, will be formed in the state. Shetter quoted the recently published report by World Economic Forum and Ola Mobility Institute and said that India has the potential to become the world’s largest EV market. “Bengaluru has over 9,000 EVs and boasts of housing major players like Mahindra Electric, Ather Energy, Yulu, Vogo and NDS Eco Motors,” Shettar added.
He said BESCOM is also installing 100 charging points at 80 locations for EVs. Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) will soon issue a notification to make it mandatory for all high rises, shopping malls and apartment complexes to have dedicated EV charging facilities in parking lots. Gaurav Gupta, Principal Secretary said that the state government will also request for a subsidy from the Central Government to open EV charging centres.