FY21 electric personal vehicles sales up on product push; two-wheeler sales down
Sales of electric cars or four-wheelers jumped 52.9% to 4,588 units last fiscal, as leading manufacturers such as Tata Motors, Hyundai Motor India, and MG Motor India launched new products in the domestic market
NEW DELHI: Given the disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, sales of electric vehicles in the country declined nearly 20% on year to 236,802 units in FY21, as per data released by the Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV).
Sales of electric two-wheelers, which account for bulk of the total sales, fell 6% to 143,837 units in the financial year that ended March. In a positive, however, sales of electric cars or four-wheelers jumped 52.9% to 4,588 units last fiscal, as leading manufacturers such as Tata Motors, Hyundai Motor India, and MG Motor India launched new products in the domestic market.
“We were anticipating a good growth before the start of FY21, but sales remained stagnant due to various reasons. Sales in an electric three-wheeler and two-wheeler segment stood low as compared to last year,” said Sohinder Gill, director-general, SMEV.
“A good thing has happened that people started moving towards advanced batteries i.e. lithium. The city speed and high-speed category in the two-wheeler segment have witnessed growth.
However, a lot more needs to be done to achieve the target under the FAME II scheme. Timely intervention by the government in a form of policy change is required to fuel growth and achieve the target by the end of FY22,” added Gill.
SMEV also highlighted the lack of strong bank financing schemes for electric vehicles. Only a few like State Bank India and Axis Bank offer loans, that too on select models. The government should ask banks to offer loans on electric vehicles, which will augment sales, it said.
“Another important factor that would transform the industry is creating awareness about green vehicles. The Central and state governments can play a crucial role in motivating and encouraging citizens to adopt e-vehicles.
We have seen in the case of Delhi wherein the state government is doing a tremendous job in creating awareness, which has encouraged more people to adopt EVs,” the statement added.
Source: livemint
