SIAM, Ministry of Heavy Industries organise EV Rally in New Delhi

The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), in association with the Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI), organised a Green Plate EV Rally in the national capital on October 18. The automotive industry body said the event will help it spread awareness and drive home the point of significant advancements in EV technology, which today sufficiently meets consumer requirements.

The EV Rally was flagged off from New Delhi's Pragati Maidan-situated Bharat Mandapam, which was also home to the recently concluded G20 Summit hosted by India last month. The rally saw over 100 electric vehicles, across all categories, including two-, and three-wheelers, as well as cars, and buses, participate for a convoy drive through the Central Delhi area. Major OEMs, including Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, Kia India, Mercedes-Benz, Audi, BMW, Volvo Cars, MG Motor India, Ather Energy and TVS Motor Company, were visible with products including the Tata Nexon EV, MG Comet, MG ZS EV, Kia EV6, Mahindra XUV400, Ather 450X, TVS iQube and Mercedes-Benz EQS, among others.

According to Vinod Aggarwal, President, SIAM, "Through this unique rally, we intend to showcase the automotive industry's significant advancements in EV technology in the last few years to be able to increasingly meet customer requirements in the present day while instilling buyer confidence."

"While the technology is continuously evolving, going forward we see the localisation of EV technology, and strengthening of charging infrastructure to bring down prices as well as eliminate customer anxiety," Aggarwal added.

Kamran Rizvi, Secretary, Ministry of Heavy Industries, said that the government's support in terms of the FAME, PLI Automotive, and PLI ACC schemes has been key in stirring the demand for EVs in India. "While around 366,000 electric scooters were sold in the last four years, we are now seeing an accelerated demand and expect to clock 12,00,000 units in FY24 itself. With this growth pattern, India's two-wheeler segment is poised to see 50 percent EV penetration by 2027, and further touch 60 percent by 2030."

"The electric passenger vehicle segment is also expected to see a substantial growth and is likely to double sales from 48,000 units in FY23 to 100,000 units in this fiscal. There is a need to spread awareness that EVs are not only fashionable, but also cost effective. EVs have become a major phenomenon in Central, South, and North India, with the latter particularly needing an increased push to spread awareness," Rizvi added.

"This Rally will be a wake up call and spread awareness amongst citizens, and will aim to gain more consumer mindspace for EVs," he pointed out.

According to Mahendra Nath Pandey, Union Minister, Ministry of Heavy Industries," While we are not self sufficient in our energy requirements, India will see local manufacturing of around 50GW of advanced energy storage systems by early 2024. We are a fortunate nation to have found lithium in Northern India, and the government has been quick to commision work in this direction. The nation's intent to be a net-zero country by 2070 is driving several initiatives towards greener technologies."

"We have already abated about 25 million litres of crude and 36KT of carbon emissions with the existing green vehicles on India's roads. From 0.13 percent in 2019, India's EV penetration today stands at 4.3 percent, indicating at quick progress."

Dr Hanif Qureshi, Joint Secretary, MHI, added that the sale of 48,000 units of passenger EVs in FY23 comprised almost 95 percent FAME-supported vehicles, and "we have a long way to go before India reaches EV sales levels of developed markets like the US, China, and several markets in Europe. Having said that, the two-wheeler segment in India is likely to electrify faster and reach the growth path quickly."

Suman Mishra, CEO, Mahindra LMM, said, "We need an irreversible transition towards sustainable mobility solutions and this rally will initiate a series of events that will continue the industry's efforts to drive sustainability."