Share of electric vehicles increased by three times in Delhi in last one year

The share of electric vehicles (EVs) in the sales of new vehicles in the national capital has increased by three times in the past one year, the state's government announced at the Delhi EV Forum. The event marked one year implementation of the Delhi EV Policy to boost the adoption of battery-powered vehicles in the state.

The EV Forum was conducted by the Dialogue and Development Commission (DDC) of the state that revealed the state's share of electric vehicles increased from 1.2 per cent between August 2019 to July 2020 to 3.3 per cent between August 2020 and July 2021. The number of electric two-wheelers during the period of August 2020-July 2021 doubled in the state from 1,013 units to 2,243 while the adoption of electric four-wheelers has grown by 20 per cent, from 813 to 1,002 units.

Transport minister Kailash Gahlot stated that the city now has 1,12,321 electric vehicles. He attributed the increment in number of EVs in the state to the proper execution of the EV Policy that rolled out financial incentives for buyers as well as the city-wide EV awareness campaign – Switch Delhi. "We are committed to our vision of making Delhi a global EV capital," Gahlot said.

He added that the Delhi government will soon sign an MoU with Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) to set up public charging infrastructure on all DTC properties across the state.

The EV Forum is a part of quarterly meetings held by DDC to find solutions to problems that are identified in the process of EV adoption in the state. The EV Forum witnessed over 140 participants across different industries such as auto, charging and fleet sectors.

The Delhi EV Policy has been dubbed as an exemplary state for the entire country as the policy addresses both climate change and the health emergency arising from the high level of air pollution in the state. It also plays a crucial role in transforming the country’s EV scenario.

(with inputs from PTI)