Niti Aayog is in the news again. The government advisory body has recently submitted its report to the Parliament. Nitin Gadkari, the road, transport and highways minister said that Niti Aayog also recommends that three-wheelers sold in India after 2023 should also have electric powertrains. “Niti Aayog in its meeting held on May 14, 2019 regarding National Mission for Transformative Mobility and Battery Storage has proposed that after March 31, 2023, only electric three-wheelers (with lithium-ion and other advanced battery chemistry only) shall be sold under the category of two-wheelers and after March 31, 2025, all new sales under the category of two-wheelers,” Gadkari added.
It is being said that various deliberations with stakeholders and the others have been held to analyse the situation. Gadkari said that the government is taking steps to ensure that there is enough electricity in the grid for these additional EVs on the road. He also mentioned that a roadmap will be presented soon for the implementation of EVs, after a discussion with stakeholders.
Recently, when the first proposal from Niti Aayog regarding electric two wheelers came out a month ago, industry stalwarts opposed the plan. They said that the government should take it step by step and ensure that the infrastructure is first in place. Moreover, this was before the proposed Union Budget 2019. The latter though favours EVs and their manufacturing in a big fashion. This should help give some impetus to the industry. However, it doesn’t favour the conventional fuelled vehicles at all.
With inputs from PTI
