Centre, states map own routes to clean mobility

The Centre's view is to treat electric and hybrids equally, but states differ on this

- Ayaan Kartik & Nehal Chaliawala

India's push for clean mobility is hitting a fork in the road, as states increasingly diverge from the Centre's approach to supporting all types of clean vehicles.

The growing divide, evident in automobile policies in various states, has also set the stage for intense lobbying, as rivals vie for policy support.

At the central level, the view is to treat electric and hybrids equally when it comes to incentives. But states are having different thoughts.

Key states like Maharashtra, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh have decided to reserve incentives for battery EVs (BEVs) in their automobile policies for 2025, a Mint review found.

Chhattisgarh recently tweaked a 2022 policy to explicitly remove incentives for hybrids.

While Uttarakhand and Delhi had toyed with incentives for hybrids in their draft policies, the former is now reconsidering its position, a person aware of the matter said.

"In Para 3 of the said rule, the phrase 'Hybrid electric vehicles will be eligible to receive 50% of the purchase incentive amount given to a fully electric vehicle' should be replaced with 'No subsidy will be given to any type of hybrid vehicles'," Chhattisgarh government said on 29 May.

Union ministers have backed equal treatment for both EVs and hybrids.