NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has sought responses from the Centre and Delhi government on making insurance mandatory for electric vehicles. A division bench of Acting Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Navin Chawla listed the case for further hearing on October 20.
The move comes after a petition was filed in the high court which said that the rise in fuel prices has created a huge market for electric vehicles. It also highlighted that a large number of electrically operated two-wheeler vehicles do not have insurance.
“Changes in geopolitical scenarios due to the Ukraine war have caused instability with regard to crude oil prices, leading to an increase in electric vehicles which have created an urgent need to enact a law to deal with electric vehicles,” the petition reads.
It further stated that if an electric vehicle is a two-wheeler with a maximum speed of up to 25km/hr and its power does not exceed 250 watts then it does not require a driver’s license to operate. As a result, students, teenagers and retirees prefer to drive these vehicles as they do not even need registration, the plea argued.
“That lack of rules relating to insurance will create a plethora of vehicles running or flying on the road which do not have any source of origin and this can create a situation of havoc in coming days,” the petitioner said.
The Delhi government is actively pursuing an EV policy to encourage more commuters opt for electric-powered vehicles. It recently decided to include and incentivise e-cycles under its EV policy.