India's electric vehicle industry has officially moved beyond its experimental phase and entered a period of market consolidation and scaling, according to industry leaders who used World EV Day 2025 to declare a new chapter in the country's clean mobility journey.
09 Sep 2025 | 4028 Views | By Shristi Ohri
The transformation is visible in the numbers. Electric vehicle sales in India are expected to exceed 2 million units in fiscal 2025, while globally, EVs are projected to capture 25% of all new car sales by year-end. This represents a dramatic shift from just a few years ago when electric ...
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The transformation is visible in the numbers. Electric vehicle sales in India are expected to exceed 2 million units in fiscal 2025, while globally, EVs are projected to capture 25% of all new car sales by year-end. This represents a dramatic shift from just a few years ago when electric vehicles were largely curiosities on Indian roads.
"Over the past year, India's EV sector has moved from experimentation to consolidation, with stronger players and sustainable models emerging," said Uday Narang, Founder and Chairman of Omega Seiki Mobility, capturing the sentiment expressed by multiple industry executives on Monday.
Behind this growth lies a furious race to build supporting infrastructure that can sustain mass adoption. Companies are attacking the challenge from multiple angles - from traditional charging stations to innovative battery-swapping networks that promise to eliminate two of EVs' biggest barriers: high upfront costs and long charging times.
Battery Smart, India's largest battery-swapping network, exemplifies this approach. "At Battery Smart, our mission is to make electric mobility affordable and accessible for all," said CEO and Co-Founder Pulkit Khurana, highlighting how alternative business models are emerging to solve adoption challenges.
The infrastructure push extends beyond charging to energy storage systems that can support the entire ecosystem. "One of the biggest roadblocks to the mass adoption of EVs was the lingering fear regarding battery efficiencies and the associated ecosystem," explained Piyush Goyal, Co-Founder and CEO of Volks Energie, whose company focuses on ensuring that renewable energy can be stored and deployed efficiently.
The industry's environmental claims are beginning to carry substantial weight as deployment scales reach meaningful levels. Mahindra Last Mile Mobility Limited, India's leading electric commercial vehicle manufacturer, reports that its 270,000+ vehicles have now traveled 4.5 billion kilometers, preventing over 185,000 metric tonnes of CO₂ emissions.
"This is an impact equivalent to planting 4.3 million trees," noted Suman Mishra, the company's Managing Director and CEO, providing a tangible measure of the sector's environmental contribution.
However, industry leaders warn that environmental benefits alone aren't sufficient. "True impact will be achieved not when millions drive EVs, but when every kilometer driven is a move forward towards climate neutrality," said Manish Dabkara, Chairman and Managing Director of EKI Energy Services, emphasizing the need for comprehensive sustainability frameworks.
Perhaps the most significant development is India's emergence as a manufacturing hub rather than merely a market for electric vehicles. Companies are making substantial investments in domestic production capabilities, particularly in the critical area of battery materials where China has historically dominated.
Himadri Speciality Chemical Ltd has established what it claims is "the world's first commercial LFP cathode active materials plant outside China," according to CMD and CEO Anurag Choudhary. The company has formed partnerships with global innovators from Australia and the USA, reflecting India's growing integration into global EV supply chains.
This manufacturing push extends throughout the value chain. "At Tata Technologies, we're accelerating this transformation through our deep domain expertise, digital engineering capabilities, and global partnerships with leading OEMs," said Anish Raghunandan, President and Client Partner for TML Group, emphasizing that the focus extends "beyond the vehicle" to reimagine the entire production ecosystem.
As the industry matures, attention is turning to sustainability challenges that extend beyond vehicle operation. With India's lithium-ion battery demand projected to hit 381.4 GWh by 2030, companies are developing recycling and second-life applications for batteries.
"At LICO Materials, we're proud to play a vital part in this journey through sustainable recycling and repurposing solutions for end-of-life lithium-ion batteries," said CEO and Founder Gaurav Dolwani, highlighting an emerging focus area for the industry.
The government is supporting this evolution through policy frameworks. The proposed "Battery Aadhaar" system would assign unique digital identities to every battery, enabling better tracking throughout their lifecycle. "This end-to-end traceability will enable accurate assessment of used batteries, guiding decisions on reuse, refurbishment, or recycling," explained Anmol Jain, Senior Research Associate at Alliance for an Energy Efficient Economy.
The industry's optimism is underpinned by sustained government support through initiatives including FAME II, reduced GST rates, and production-linked incentive schemes. "With a unique blend of demographic scale, engineering innovation, and policy acceleration, the country is not just preparing for the electric future, it is actively shaping it," observed Srihari Mulgund, Partner and New-Age Mobility leader at EY-Parthenon India.
Component suppliers are responding to this policy environment with their own investments. "Our strategic investments in EV component technology reflect our commitment to a cleaner, more efficient future of mobility," said Ravi Mehra, Managing Director of Uno Minda, noting that the company is "not just adapting to this change—we're helping drive it."
As India's EV industry marks this World EV Day milestone, the message from leaders is clear: the experimental phase is over, and the scaling phase has begun. Whether the infrastructure, manufacturing capabilities, and policy frameworks can keep pace with growing demand will determine if India can fulfill its ambition to become a global EV hub rather than simply a large market.