OEMs need to invest in eco-friendly technology : Nitin Gadkari

“Polluting vehicles especially diesel vehicles do not have a future in India, OEMs need to invest in eco-friendly technology”, says Nitin Gadkari. 

Speaking at the inauguration of SIAM’s 57th Annual Convention 2017, Nitin Gadkari, minister for road transport & highways (MoRTH), shipping and water resources, river development & Ganga rejuvenation, government of India, warned the automobile industry and said, “Polluting vehicles especially diesel vehicles do not have a future in India. I request automobile companies to invest in environment friendly technology.”

Gadkari spoke about how MoRTH is working on several projects and its priorities are very clear, with inland waterways being its top priority followed by railway and roadways.

The transport minister said the government is beginning its work on 12 new projects for building express highways that includes a new Baroda-Mumbai expressway that entails the investment of around Rs 44,000 crore. The government is also building new highways on the outskirts of Delhi NCR region, which will help movement of trucks travelling from nearby states and will make it easier for them to pass through the Delhi region without entering the city. This is expected to cut down the pollution and traffic woes to some extent.

On the challenge of low-availability of trained-drivers front Gadkari said “In India, we have a shortage of 22 lakh drivers and to address this problem we are going to set-up 2,000 new driving centres in the rural pockets and remote areas across the country. I request the automotive companies to step ahead and work along with us in this area.”

Gadkari mentioned that the government was also focusing on alternate fuel technologies, and will establish 15 new industries under the petroleum ministry that will have a focus for manufacturing ethanol and methanol bio-fuels.  He requested the automotive industry to make investments in new engine technologies that can be powered by bio-fuels such as LNG, Ethanol, Methanol, among others.

Taking the lead

Reaffirming the stance of the government’s ambitious plan for having an all-electric vehicle fleet in the country he said, early starters and first movers in this area will reap the benefits and will be appreciated by the government. As this areas offer economic viability and an integrated approach will help solve the multiple issues and challenges faced by the Indian automotive industry. He further said, “We need to focus on reducing imports, promote EV technologies and ensure that many more charging stations come-up soon.” He also mentioned that there was a need for setting-up for electric infrastructure for public transportation.

Gadkari encouraged the auto industry to invest in engine R&D for applications ranging from automobiles to shipping.  He said “the government was ready to support the automotive industry which has been asking for more clarity, but we are very clear that polluting vehicles will be taken off the road”.

He also jokingly said that the Supreme Court will not pay heed to any more excuses on the inventory build-up by OEMs that happened earlier in April this year, during the transformation from BS-III to BS-IV engine norms.

Also read : Request govt to reduce polluting vehicles and ban 15 year old vehicles: Vinod Dasari, President, SIAM 
 
‘It appears the diesel car industry is reluctant to fix the emissions problem once and for all.’