Watch: This small electric hatchback totalled in fire in Bengaluru

Mahindra E20 small electric hatchback may not be in sale, but the car made headlines again. A Mahindra E20 was totally destroyed in a devastating fire in Bengaluru. Videos of the incident went viral as people shared clips online. The video reveals the small electric car was engulfed by fire completely. It was not clear if anyone was injured due to the fire incident. Also, the reason behind the fire is unknown.

In one of the clips shared on the social media platform X (previously Twitter), it can be seen that billows of smoke emerge from the Mahindra E20 electric hatchback. The video also reveals a police officer trying to restrict people recording the incident from approaching the burning vehicle.

This is not the first time an electric car has caught fire in India. Over the last few years, as the number of electric vehicles across India has grown significantly, the number of EV fire incidents has grown as well. Not only electric cars but electric scooters too have been involved in such fire incidents.

Electric vehicles may not run on highly combustible fuel like petrol or diesel but these clean energy vehicles too are at risk of catching fire. However, the risk of catching fire in an electric vehicle is significantly lower than in a fossil fuel-powered vehicle. On the other hand, the intensity of an EV fire is such high that dousing the flame in these cases is very difficult.

The EV fire incidents are primarily attributed to the high energy density battery packs, which are concealed in a compact space and store a large amount of energy. Thermal inefficiency or mechanical faults can result in a devastating fire involving the electric vehicle. In case the battery pack is damaged, an internal short circuit can trigger a chain reaction, which is known as a thermal runaway. This results in fire incidents.