March 19, 2024

General Studies Paper 3

Context: India’s Electric Vehicle future shines bright with ambitious government targets and advancements in technology.

Roadmap for Electric vehicles

  • India has set an ambitious goal to become a leader in the electric vehicle market by 2030 with the government laying out a comprehensive roadmap to achieve this goal, which includes several initiatives and policies to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles in the country.
  • One of the key initiatives is the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles (FAME) scheme, which provides subsidies to customers who purchase electric vehicles.
  • The government has also set a target to achieve 30% electric vehicle penetration in the country by 2030.
  • In this regard, the government is also taking steps for development of domestic manufacturing capabilities for electric vehicles and their components.

Key highlights:

  • Electric vehicle adoption, including four, three, and two-wheelers, and buses, has seen a significant uptick in recent years.
  • Target of net-zero carbon emissions in the future will help promote the e-vehicle industry.
  • Push for electric mobility will reduce dependence on oil imports and free up foreign exchange reserves.
  • Last-mile mobility is a defining sector that will help carry this momentum, with partnerships with companies like Spoctech Green Ventures.
  • Decisive growth in the mass-market category of private vehicles in 2023, particularly in Tier II and III cities will promote demand.
  • Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles (FAME) scheme extended until March 31, 2024 to provide subsidies will aid electric vehicle adoption.
  • Volumes, mass adoption, and large-scale component manufacturing will drive prices down.

Various initiatives to promote e-vehicles

About: In India, the government has implemented several schemes to promote the use of electric vehicles (EVs). These include:

  • FAME I & II: Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles is a government scheme, which provides incentives for the purchase of EVs and the installation of charging infrastructure.
  • NEMMP: National Electric Mobility Mission Plan was launched in 2020, which aims to have at least 30% of vehicles on Indian roads be electric by 2030.
  • Tax benefits: The Government has announced plans to provide an additional income tax deduction of INR 1.5 Lakh on the interest paid on loans taken to purchase electric vehicles.
  • PLI: The government has announced a Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme to boost domestic manufacturing and attract global companies to invest in the Indian market.
  • NTTM: The Government also plans to set up a National Technical Textiles Mission (NTTM) to promote the use of technical textiles in various sectors, including the EV industry.
  • Manufacturing plants: Setting up of battery manufacturing units in India to promote the use of electric vehicles.
  • Public transport: The Government has also announced plans to promote the use of electric vehicles in the public transportation sector, by providing financial assistance to states for the purchase of electric buses.E.g., E-buses in Delhi
  • Ensuring last-mile connectivity: The government has also identified last-mile mobility as a key sector to drive the adoption of electric vehicles E.g., deployment of a fleet of over 5,000 vehicles in Chennai.
  • Promoting e-vehicles in government:  In an attempt to promote use of electric vehicles in the public sector, the government has plans to replace existing government vehicles with electric vehicles.
  • Phased Manufacturing Programme (PMP): Indigenous manufacturing of electric vehicles, their assemblies/sub-assemblies, and parts/sub-parts/inputs of the sub-assemblies to be promoted over time through a graded duty structure.
  • National Mission on Transformative Mobility and Storage: Government aims to drive strategies for transformative mobility and Phased Manufacturing Programmes for electric vehicles, electric vehicle Components and Batteries.

What more can be done?

  • Government can devise strategies for transformative mobility for electric vehicles, electric vehicle Components and Batteries
  • Creating a Phased Manufacturing Program (PMP) to localize production across the entire electric vehicle value chain.
  • Coordination with key stakeholders in Ministries/ Departments/states to integrate various initiatives to transform mobility in India.
  • Ensuring holistic and comprehensive growth of the battery manufacturing industry in India with initial focus on large-scale module and assembly plants on Gigascale manufacturing in future.
  • Preparing roadmap for enabling India to leverage its size and scale to produce innovative, competitive multi-modal mobility solutions that can be deployed globally in diverse contexts

Conclusion

  • In an attempt to leverage the potential of e-vehicles, the Indian Government needs to provide more incentives and subsidies for the purchase of EVs, invest in charging infrastructure and battery technology, and promote domestic manufacturing capabilities for electric vehicles and their components.
  • Overall, electric vehicles offer a cleaner, more efficient, and cost-effective alternative to traditional gasoline-powered vehicles, and with the right infrastructure and policies in place, they can play a major role in reducing air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions while improving energy independence
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