According to its ambitious Electric Vehicle Policy, which was launched in 2020, the Delhi government offered a subsidy of almost Rs 100 crore for electric vehicles. This is the largest incentive given by any state.
Official figures show that 62,483 EVs have been sold since August 7, 2020, when the Delhi EV Policy was launched.
According to the Arvind Kejriwal government, the policy’s goal is to encourage the rapid adoption of EVs in order to ensure that they contribute 25% to all new vehicle registrations by 2020.
In addition to providing incentives, all EVs are exempted from road tax and registration fees.
According to the statement, the success of the Delhi EV Policy can be attributed to the i3 model, which encourages innovation, incentivisation and inclusion.
It stated that Charge Point Operators (CPO), has deployed over 2,000 charging stations and battery swapping stations to solve the problem of range anxiety for all EV owners, has said.
Kejriwal also launched the Switch Delhi Campaign in February 2021 to raise awareness about the role of EVs in making Delhi cleaner and reducing pollution.
Before the policy was implemented, the capital’s EV market was driven by electric rickshaws. They contributed almost 85 per cent of all EV sales.
It stated that two-wheelers make up two-thirds of Delhi’s new vehicle registrations. Accordingly to the policy, the goal was to promote sales of commercial three-wheelers as well as electric two-wheelers. The government signed a pact last February with Delhi Transco Limited to allow charging at 100 locations in Delhi. This initiative will result in the introduction of more than 900 charging stations and over 100 battery swapping stations.
These facilities would allow owners to charge their EVs for less than Rs 2 per unit, which is the lowest price in the country.
In November 2021, the government opened a single-window facility to facilitate the purchase of EV chargers through power distribution companies’ online portals. It also offered three years warranty including installation. A portal online was created to allow the purchase of electric autos and for a five per cent interest subsidy.
The government claims that 150 electric buses have been operating on Delhi roads and that the capital will soon see close to 2,000 of these buses by 2023. This will make Delhi the largest city in the country.
Three bus depots are already electrified. Another 17 will be by June next year, and another 35 by December next. This brings the total number of bus depots that have been electrified to 55.
Kailash Gahlot, Transport Minister, stated that electric vehicles were helping Delhi reduce air pollution and emissions. On the one hand, they create more jobs, increase earnings for commercial vehicles, auto-owners with lower costs of ownership, and give users the opportunity to ride in quiet and comfortable vehicles.
He said that he was looking forward to seeing more female drivers in private and public vehicles, especially with the emergence of EVs.