The government must bring in regulations that mandate the vehicle industry to have a certain percentage of their production and sales as zero-emissions vehicles, says CSE
Despite India offering several incentives, the share of electric vehicles in the market remains minuscule.
According to a new assessment by the Delhi-based non-profit Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), electric vehicles only have about a 4.72 per cent market share. And that too when the central government aims to achieve 30 per cent electrification by 2030.
The assessment analysed data provided by the Vahan Database of the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways. The CSE assessment says that the government must bring in regulations that mandate the vehicle industry to have a certain percentage of their production and sales as zero-emissions vehicles or ZEV is the need of the hour.
The mandate will require manufacturers to sell a minimum specified number of ZEVs. The report specifies that having a ZEV in the overall sales in the market is necessary to push the zero emissions transition.
The new mandate will help India’s signing on to the global ZEV declaration of 100 per cent transition by 2030-2040, with specific mention of two- and three-wheelers.
“Incentives for consumers and fleet operators to purchase EVs such as the central scheme Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles (FAME II) and EV policies of state governments, need an additional lever of ZEV mandate. A mandate can bring longer-term policy visibility and more certainty in investments and markets,” said Anumita Roychowdhury, executive director of research and advocacy at CSE.
The report also noted that even though the price parity of EV models with internal combustion (ICE) vehicles has improved considerably in the two- and three-wheeler segments, Targets set under FAME II are yet to be fully realised.
Just 6,630 e-two-wheelers against the target of 10,000 have been sanctioned, making the NITI Aayog’s ambition of 70-80 per cent electrification of the two- and three-wheeler markets by 2030 even more challenging.
The annual Auto Expo 2023 that took place in the national capital in January clearly gave a glimpse of the future with as many as 16 new four-wheeled EVs launched or displayed this year.
However, when it comes to electric mobility, it is clear that a greater push such as the ZEV mandate is needed to meet India’s targets and global pledges.
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