Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari has declared the government’s decision to set up one e-charging kiosk at around 69,000 petrol stations across India, adding to further step to the government’s plan to make India an electric vehicle nation by 2030. He also added that the Centre has taken several steps to promote electric vehicles like reducing GST to 5% and allowing delinking of battery cost of 2/3-wheelers from the vehicle’s price.
In February 2020, NTPC, EESL, and REIL were given an in-principle green flag by the Union government to set up 2,600 EV charging stations. In October, the Department of Heavy Industry floated an Expression of Interest (EoI), inviting proposals from Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs), state-owned distribution companies, government organizations, and other entities to set up and operate charging stations for electric vehicles.
The Union government has also boosted growth by giving approval to Phase-II of the FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles in India) scheme for 3-years starting from April 1, 2019. Under this phase, the Centre aims to support the development of EV charging infrastructure by making capital grants accessible to organizations so that they can further encourage the usage of electric vehicles.
A MarketWatch report claims that India’s charging infrastructure market is likely to expand at 40% YoY in the next 4-5 years. Industry experts are also convinced that 40-45% electric conversion can be a reality by 2030, provided that the infrastructure is created for it. As per Inc42Plus, India requires around 4 lakh charging stations by 2026 to meet the requirement of 20 lakh electric cars.
