2021-12-04 20:04:54
Electric Vehicles: Driving towards a cleaner environmentTo promote electric mobility, the Ministry of Heavy Industries is organizing a round table on December 4, 2021, in Goa with the stakeholders. The Minister of Heavy Industries, Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey, will chair the event.
India is committed to reducing its carbon footprints for a better and more sustained environment. At the recently concluded COP26 in Glasgow, India pledged a net-zero climate goal by 2070. From harnessing solar energy to running electric motors, India’s approach is to achieve a cleaner, sustainable, advanced, and more efficient environment. Aligning with the goal is an Electric Vehicle (EV) based mobility system.
Electric Vehicles (EV)
EVs or electric vehicles are either partially or fully powered on electric power. These have low running costs, are eco-friendly, and have comparatively lesser maintenance costs.
India & automobile sector
India is the fifth largest car manufacturer and the seventh-largest commercial vehicle manufacturer in the world. The Automobile sector contributes 35% to manufacturing GDP, 20% to industrial GDP, and 6.4% to overall GDP. The Auto industry also generates employment of 13 persons for each truck, 6 persons for each car, four persons for every three wheelers and one person for two-wheelers.
Venturing into EVs opens the country to immense opportunities across services, manufacturing of vehicles, battery supply chain, charging infrastructure, and more.
Increase in electric vehicles
There has been a significant increase in the number of electric vehicles in the country. According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, the number of electric vehicles registered in 2018 in the country as per the e-Vahan portal is 1,31,554. The number rose to 1,61,314 in 2019. Cumulatively, as of July 2021, there are a total of 5,17,322 registered electric vehicles in the country.
FAME- the EV scheme
There are various government schemes for the regulation of electric vehicles in India. The Ministry of Heavy Industries’ scheme, Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles in India (FAME India) 2015 promotes the adoption of electric/ hybrid vehicles in the country.
At present, Phase-II of the FAME India scheme is being implemented for 5 years w.e.f. April 1, 2019, with total budgetary support of Rs. 10,000 crores. The phase focuses on supporting the electrification of public and shared transportation. Under Phase-II of the FAME India Scheme, The Ministry of Heavy Industries has supported 1.65 lakh Electric Vehicles by way of demand incentive amounting Rs 564 crore. The Ministry also sanctioned 2,877 EV charging stations amounting to Rs 500 crore in 68 cities across 25 States/UTs.
Initiatives for promotion of e-vehicles
1) The Government on May 12, 2021, approved a Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for the manufacturing of Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC). This was meant to reduce the prices of batteries in the country, which would further lead to a reduction in the cost of electric vehicles.
2) The Government has also reduced GST on electric vehicles from 12% to 5% while GST on chargers/ charging stations for electric vehicles has been reduced from 18% to 5%.
3) According to the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH) battery-operated vehicles will be given green license plates and be exempted from permit requirements.
4) Niti Aayog’s Shoonya campaign is also collaborating with industry players to reduce emissions from the urban freight sector, by promoting the use of EVs.
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