Own electric car? Beware of cyber attacks at EV charging stations, says Gadkari

Electric vehicle charging stations are also susceptible to cyber attacks and cyber security incidents like any other technological application, Parliament was informed on Thursday. In a written reply to Lok Sabha, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In), which is mandated to track and monitor cyber security incidents in India, received reports of vulnerabilities in products and applications related to electric vehicle charging stations.

"The government is fully cognizant and aware of various cyber security threats and is actively taking steps to combat the issue of hacking," Gadkari said.

He said as per the information reported to and tracked by CERT-In, the number of cyber security incidents during 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021 and 2022 is 2,08,456; 3,94,499; 11,58,208; 14,02,809 and 13,91,457, respectively.

Replying to a separate query, the road transport and highways minister said ₹147 lakh was disbursed as compensation to victims of hit-and-run cases in current fiscal year till February.

The ministry has notified the Compensation to Victims of Hit and Run Motor Accidents Scheme, 2022.

It provides for increased compensation to victims of hit-and-run accidents, ₹50,000 (in case of grievous injury) and ₹2,00,000 (in case of death) including detailed procedure for availing this compensation.

Replying to another question, Gadkari said the ministry has set a higher target of 12,200 km for construction of National Highways during current financial year as compared to previous three financial years.

"The target of construction of NHs for financial year 2023-24 has not yet been finalized," he added.

The minister informed that there are 19 projects costing ₹21,864 crore which are delayed due to delays in land acquisition.