Just over a month after Osamu Suzuki, chairman of Suzuki Motor Corporation, while speaking at the MOVE Summit in New Delhi, revealed that Maruti Suzuki India would start road-testing 50 EV prototypes, the company has confirmed that it has flagged of its prototype EVs for field testing. This project is in line with the company’s plan to introduce an electric vehicle by 2020 in the Indian market.

The prototype EVs were flagged off from the company’s Gurgaon plant by CV Raman, senior executive director (Engineering), today. The EVs have been developed exclusively by Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan and built at Maruti Suzuki, Gurgaon facility.

According to Maruti Suzuki India, “This extensive real-life usage of the vehicles in multiple terrains and climatic conditions will help the company get valuable insights that will help in validation and successful launch of electric vehicle technology in India. Testing of these vehicles will also help Maruti Suzuki to gather critical inputs based on customer perspectives and will help to create a reliable and suitable electric vehicle.”

The company says these prototype EVs are developed on an existing model by Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan and manufactured at Maruti Suzuki Gurgaon plant in India, exclusively for fleet testing.