Uttar Pradesh backs hybrid tax waiver in win for Toyota: Report
Uttar Pradesh will not reverse a decision to waive registration taxes on hybrid cars, two persons in the know told Reuters, effectively giving a win to Toyota, and simultaneously dealing a blow to Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra.
Hyundai, Kia Motors, Mahindra and Tata lobbied the state which is responsible for 10% of the country's car sales, to do away with the incentive, noting that it would make it more difficult to reach India's targets for adopting fully electric cars and affect investment plans, Reuters noted.
In a meeting between state officials and automakers on Sunday, Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Singh said there would not be a rollback of the decision, said an industry source and a state government official with direct knowledge, to the newswire.
Singh did not answer calls seeking comment.
Executives note that EV producers are concerned that other states could follow Uttar Pradesh, where last month's waiver of registration taxes on some hybrid cars made them 10% cheaper.
Sunday's meeting was attended by representatives of Hyundai, Mahindra and Tata - who sought a reversal of the tax waivers, and also by Maruti and Toyota which back the scheme, said one of the sources.
Mahindra refrained from offering comments and Reuters could also not elicit timely responses from the rest of the automakers.
India imposes a federal tax of 5% on EVs while hybrids are taxed at 43%, just below the 48% for gasoline cars. State road and registration taxes are extra and determined by local governments.