"The future of EV charging extends beyond simply delivering power" – Reshu Madan, Havells

India's EV charging ecosystem is at a crucial stage as vehicle adoption grows and infrastructure expands beyond major cities. Questions around charging reliability, interoperability, public charging networks and emerging technologies are becoming increasingly important. In an exclusive interaction with HT Auto, Reshu Madan, President & SBU Head, Havells India, discusses the company's approach to EV charging through its MotrON business, the challenges shaping India's charging ecosystem, and his views on infrastructure expansion, emerging technologies and the policy measures that could influence the sector's growth.

Q: India's public charging network is still concentrated in major cities. What do you think is the biggest bottleneck preventing faster expansion, and what role can private companies like Havells play in solving it?

Reshu Madan: The biggest challenge today is making charging commercially viable across the country. While EV adoption is picking up in metros, many Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, as well as highway corridors, are still seeing relatively low utilisation. This creates a chicken-and-egg situation: charging operators wait for more EVs, while customers wait for better charging infrastructure.

The focus also needs to go beyond installing chargers. Reliable power supply, easy deployment, quick service and consistent uptime are just as important. A charger that isn’t working when someone needs it can quickly erode confidence in EVs. This is where companies like Havells can make a real difference. Our role goes beyond supplying chargers; to simplify the entire experience—from installation and maintenance to long-term service support. As the market grows, customers will value reliability and after-sales support as much as charging speed.

Collaboration across the ecosystem will also be equally critical with governments, utilities, vehicle manufacturers, charging operators, and technology providers playing a key role to play in expanding charging infrastructure.

Q: The EV charging market is becoming increasingly crowded, with startups, oil marketing companies and global players all entering the space. What differentiates Havells' approach, and why should consumers or businesses choose MotrON over competing solutions?

Reshu Madan: The EV charging market is becoming more competitive, which is a positive sign for India’s electric mobility journey. As the industry matures, differentiation will depend less on the number of chargers deployed and more on delivering reliable, long-term charging infrastructure. Whether for individual EV owners, fleet operators, charge point operators or real estate developers, customers expect the same fundamentals: safe, reliable charging solutions backed by dependable service.

At Havells, we believe these are built on three pillars—trust, engineering excellence and lifecycle support. Our approach to EV charging is rooted in decades of experience in India's electrical infrastructure industry, where safety, quality and reliability have always been non-negotiable. Through MotrON, we are extending that legacy into the EV ecosystem with a comprehensive portfolio of AC and DC charging solutions designed for homes, workplaces, commercial facilities and public charging networks.

Another key differentiator is our strong engineering and manufacturing capability. India's charging ecosystem requires solutions designed specifically for local power conditions, environmental challenges and customer expectations. Combined with our nationwide service network, this enables us to deliver not just quality products, but high uptime, responsive maintenance and dependable after-sales support—factors that will increasingly define customer experience as the market expands. Our focus is therefore not on selling standalone chargers, but on enabling complete charging ecosystems.

As the EV charging industry evolves, we believe leadership will increasingly be defined by reliability, service quality and brand trust rather than hardware specifications alone. These are strengths Havells has built over decades, and they form the foundation of the MotrON business today.

Q: Many EV owners continue to rely primarily on home charging. How do you see the balance between home, workplace and public charging evolving over the next five years, and where do you expect the strongest demand?

Reshu Madan: Home charging will continue to be the foundation of EV ownership in India. For most private EV owners, charging overnight at home is the most convenient and cost-effective option, and that is unlikely to change in the near term. However, as EV adoption accelerates, charging behaviour will evolve beyond a single location.

Over the next five years, we expect the market to evolve across three complementary pillars—home charging, workplace and destination charging, and public fast charging. Home charging will remain the largest segment, driven by growing EV adoption and increasing investments in charging-ready residential communities. The fastest growth, however, is likely to come from workplace and destination charging. As businesses advance their sustainability goals and employee EV adoption rises, offices, retail centers, hotels, hospitals, educational institutions and public parking facilities will become important charging hubs.

Public DC fast charging will also continue to expand, but its primary role will be enabling long-distance travel, urban top-up charging and commercial fleet operations. For fleet operators, charging reliability, uptime and speed directly influence operational efficiency, making dependable fast-charging infrastructure essential to commercial EV adoption.

Another important trend will be the diversification of charging demand. India's EV ecosystem extends well beyond passenger cars to include two-wheelers, three-wheelers, buses, logistics and commercial fleets. Supporting this diverse landscape will require a mix of AC and DC charging solutions tailored to different use cases rather than a One-size-fits-all approach. Ultimately, the future of EV charging in India will be about creating a seamless network where each serves a distinct purpose and together delivers a convenient charging experience.

Q: One of the biggest concerns among EV buyers is charging reliability rather than just charger availability. How is Havells addressing issues such as uptime, maintenance, after-sales service and interoperability across different EV brands?

Reshu Madan: The EV charging industry's biggest challenge today is no longer infrastructure availability, but infrastructure reliability. As EV adoption scales, customer confidence will depend on a simple expectation: when they arrive at a charging point, it should be operational, safe and deliver a seamless charging experience.

Charging failures leave a far greater impression than successful sessions. Even a large charging network can lose credibility if users frequently encounter unavailable or underperforming chargers. why, at Havells, we view reliability as a design philosophy, not just a product feature.

Drawing on decades of expertise in electrical infrastructure, we have built our AC and DC charging portfolio around the principles of safety, performance and long-term dependability. However, achieving high uptime goes beyond hardware. It requires an integrated ecosystem comprising robust product design, quality installation, stable software, remote monitoring, preventive maintenance and responsive after-sales service. This is where our nationwide service network becomes a key differentiator. As charging infrastructure expands beyond major cities, timely maintenance and lifecycle support will be just as important as the charger itself. Customers are investing in long-term infrastructure, and they expect dependable support throughout its lifecycle.

Q: India experiences extreme weather conditions, voltage fluctuations and varying grid quality. How have these unique challenges influenced the development of the MotrON charging solutions?

Reshu Madan: Unlike mature EV markets with relatively uniform operating conditions, India's charging infrastructure must perform across extremes—from Rajasthan's scorching heat and coastal humidity to monsoon rains, dusty industrial zones, and inconsistent power quality. Designing for India, therefore, demands far more than fast charging or advanced software; it requires chargers that deliver reliable, safe performance in real-world conditions.

For MotrOn, our decades of expertise in India's electrical infrastructure have shaped the approach. We understand the realities of Indian power networks, installation environments and customer expectations, and have engineered our EV charging solutions accordingly. Robust power electronics, effective thermal management, durable components and advanced protection systems ensure dependable performance despite voltage fluctuations, harsh weather and continuous usage.

Charging infrastructure is also a long-term investment, not a consumer device. Customers expect years of reliable operation, making safety, serviceability, lifecycle support and product reliability fundamental to our design philosophy. At the same time, India's EV ecosystem is evolving across multiple use cases—from homes and workplaces to highways, public charging hubs and fleet depots. Our AC and DC charging portfolio has been developed to address these diverse requirements with the flexibility to scale alongside the market. Ultimately, our goal is to build charging solutions that customers can trust, wherever they are deployed.

Q: As EV adoption grows, do you believe the industry should move towards a more standardized and interconnected charging ecosystem, similar to what we see in mature global markets? What changes are still needed from both policymakers and industry stakeholders?

Reshu Madan: A standardized and interoperable charging ecosystem will be essential for accelerating EV adoption in India. Common technical standards, seamless user experiences and greater interoperability will help build consumer confidence while improving utilization of charging infrastructure.

Recent policy developments, including the proposed Delhi EV Policy 2.0, reflect this direction by placing greater emphasis on expanding charging infrastructure across residential societies, workplaces, commercial establishments and public spaces. Such initiatives, alongside national efforts, can help create a more accessible and dependable charging network while encouraging wider EV adoption.

India has already made encouraging progress through evolving regulatory standards and supportive government policies. Going forward, continued collaboration between policymakers, infrastructure providers, automakers and technology companies will be important to ensure consistency in safety standards, communication protocols and charging infrastructure deployment.

Q: What emerging technologies do you believe will have the biggest impact on EV charging in India, whether it's ultra-fast charging, vehicle-to-grid (V2G), renewable integration or something else, and how is Havells preparing for that future?

Reshu Madan: The future of EV charging extends beyond simply delivering power, it will be about intelligently managing energy. Technologies such as smart load management, renewable energy integration, cloud-based diagnostics, predictive maintenance and energy analytics will play a significant role in making charging more efficient and sustainable.

While ultra-fast charging will continue to be important for specific use cases such as highways and commercial fleets, we believe intelligent AC charging will remain central to India's mass-market EV ecosystem because it aligns well with home and workplace charging patterns.

Havells is already preparing for this evolution. Our roadmap includes enhanced cloud connectivity, predictive maintenance capabilities, solar-aware charging, dynamic load management and deeper integration with residential, commercial and fleet energy ecosystems. Our vision is not just to manufacture chargers, but to build an intelligent EV charging ecosystem that supports India's long-term clean mobility ambitions.

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