Going Electric, One Leaf A Time

Will India awake to an electric future? The Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways wants it to. So maybe, the new Nissan Leaf has a future in India

- Aninda Sardar

AT THE 57TH ANNUAL convention of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), the minister of road transport and highways, Nitin Gadkari, told the automobile world, “The government has a crystal clear policy to reduce imports (of crude oil) and curb pollution.” He made it equally clear that if needed the government would “bulldoze it – the required legislation – through”. The sign is ominous for an industry that is heavily reliant on the conventional internal combustion engine (ICE). The country’s automobile makers will have no alternative but to consider alternative fuels, foremost among them electricity.

In a coincidence, his statements came just a day after the world premiere of the new Nissan Leaf in Tokyo. Did Nissan have an inkling of what was to come the next day? Despite obvious appeal to conspiracy theorists, the idea seems a little far-fetched. Most likely, it was a case of vision by Nissan that had simply coincided with the announcement in what is likely to be one of the largest volume driving markets for Nissan globally.