The EV race among states
Odisha on Friday announced its Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy and became the 10th state in India to roll out policy guidelines to make the transition from conventional fossil fuel-based mobility to electric mode. Its EV Policy includes subsidy, interest subvention, incentives for manufacturers and battery production, among others. Jharkhand too unveiled its draft EV Policy before a host of automakers in Delhi as it sought to lure in manufacturers to an auto-cluster it is planning.
The race among states is a good sign as India fervently seeks to cut down on its fossil fuel consumption. About 80% of its oil imports are to meet transport sector needs. It is also mandated to reduce greenhouse gases emissions by around 35% of 2005 levels in another nine years to meet global climate goals. For a 1.3 billion population, the deadlines and targets are stiff and the current state of EV use is nascent compared to the global scenario. Despite the economic downturn caused by the pandemic, EV sales showed an encouraging growth last year, with Europe recording 1.4 million registrations, followed by 1.2 million in China and 295 thousand in the US.
India, by the middle of July, clocked 1.04 lakh EV sales in the current fiscal whereas in the last 3.5 years, the total registrations were 5.17 lakh. But it stands at the cusp of a revolution if it pushes EVs seriously. Between 2001 and 2017, vehicle ownership in the country rose over three-fold. Close to 80% of vehicles in India currently are two-wheelers. This is the segment that will drive the change and it must be tapped. The Centre has extended its Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles scheme till 2024, with a total budgetary outlay of Rs 10,000 crore. The government’s support to manufacturing, R&D, subsidy and scrapping apart, it must show intent by investing robustly in battery manufacturing and charging infrastructure, which is very negligible at present. It must also adopt EVs in the public transport system in a big way. Central and state governments must lead by inducting EVs for office use. That would send a clear signal to the people that it takes the EV business seriously