India to develop EV manufacturing hub like Detriot, says Economic Survey
- India needs electric vehicles to curb pollution in Indian cities and reduce the import of crude oil
- Road transport accounts for around 90% of the total emissions in the transport sector in India
New Delhi: To boost electric mobility in India and ensure development of a proper ecosystem for such vehicles, the National Democratic Alliance government will push for large-scale manufacturing of electric vehicles and related components in India, on the lines of Detroit in the US.
The Economic Survey 2018-2019, tabled in Parliament on Thursday by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, emphasised the need for electric vehicles to curb pollution in Indian cities and reduce import of crude oil. India is the third largest crude oil importer in the world and its cities feature prominently in the list of the most polluted cities in the world.
According to the Survey, road transport accounts for around 90% of the total emissions in the transport sector in India. Given India’s large dependence on petroleum products, it is imperative that there be a shift of focus to alternative fuels to support mobility in a sustainable manner.
“Appropriate policy measures are needed to lower the overall lifetime ownership costs of EVs and make them an attractive alternative to conventional vehicles for all consumers” the survey noted.
The Union government has already sanctioned ₹10,000 crore for incentivising electric vehicles through the second phase of the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME) scheme.
The Economic Survey underscored the government’s intention to focus on setting up adequate charging infrastructure for promoting electric vehicles. At present, lack of charging stations is one of the main reasons behind marginal sales of electric vehicles in the domestic market.
The Survey said it was important to have adequate charging stations across the road network and access to fast charging facilities must be fostered to increase market share of electric vehicles in the coming years.
“The market share of electric cars is around 2% in China while it is around 39% in Norway whereas the Indian market share of electric cars is a meager 0.06% in India. Electric two-wheelers have been the major part of EV sales with sales of around 54,800 in 2018 and electrification of two-wheelers and buses has picked up pace in recent years,” the Survey added.
Source : livemint
