Interest in EV Booms as Govt. Plans To Boost Sustainable Mobility through new EV policies

The recent announcements regarding electric vehicle incentives with rising fuel prices will prove to be the strong factors supporting the EV industry in near future. The state of Gujarat has come up with a new electric vehicle policy. Recently, The Chief Minister of Gujarat, Mr. Vijay Rupani announced the details of the said new EV scheme. The ‘Gujarat Electric Vehicle Policy 2021’, is created with a view of seeing around 2 Lakh electric vehicles on the streets of Gujarat in the coming 4 years. According to this new policy, electric vehicle buyers will get subsidies of Rs 10,000/kWh. Subsidy support of Rs 870 crore for four years will be provided wherein a concession of up to Rs 20,000 on electric two-wheelers will be given. Also highlighting that electric three-wheelers will also get a subsidy of up to Rs 50,000 whereas four-wheeler buyers can be granted up to the Rs 1.5 lakh discount. These subsidies will be given to the buyers through the Direct Benefit Transfer scheme that the government introduced in 2013. Under FAME II policy, even registration fees for all-electric vehicles are exempted. This Announcement boosted the morale of EV OEMs and electric vehicle enthusiasts.  

The government also plans to oversee the provision of  500 charging stations across the state and will provide subsidies of up to Rs 10 lakh for the construction of such charging facilities. To the date, approval for 250 charging stations has been granted, said Rupani.

The electric vehicle policy announced by the Gujarat government on June 22 was welcomed by leading automobile companies like WardWizard Innovations & Mobility Limited, Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra as well as the Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV) and said that it would lead to the development of a complete EV ecosystem in Gujarat.

Many EV companies are thanking the Government of Gujarat for announcing the SMEV promising and bold EV policy. The policy certainly has the potential to make Gujarat an EV hub and will consolidate the rapid adoption of electric vehicles in the state. Companies are excited to be a part of this revolution and are willing to work for achieving the state government’s target under the policy. The policy also emphasizes charging infrastructure that will address the issue of range concern, especially among those looking to purchase an electric four-wheeler. The new EV policy in Gujarat, after the recent amendments of the FAME II policy, is considered to be an excellent stroke by many leading EV manufacturing setups.

Yatin Gupte, the chairman of WardWizard Innovations & Mobility Ltd. states that “The announcement of ‘subsidy and the far-sighted initiative’ in the electric vehicle sector by the Government of Gujarat is going to become a landmark development in the entire country. These initiatives of installing charging points, monetary subsidies, free registration of vehicles and making Gujarat a hub for electric vehicle companies will directly benefit the customers and environment.   As we always promote that every family’s second vehicle must be an electric vehicle. The Government and innovative manufacturers like us are opting for every possible step to provide a sustainable and carbon footprint-free mobility solution, and now it’s time for the customers to take benefit of this.”