Robust Charging Infra Key To India's EV30@30 Ambition

WHILE GOVERNMENT AIMS TO HAVE 30% OF 2030 CAR SALES AS EVS IN THE COUNTRY, THE VISION SEEMS UNATTAINABLE WITH JUST OVER 12,000 PUBLIC CHARGING STATIONS IN THE COUNTRY AT PRESENT.

- PRIYANKA TANWER

In recent years, Electric Vehicles (EVs) have proved to be a key solution to address pollution and carbon footprint issues in the country with its burgeoning population and rapid urbanisation. However, a total of 21.7 lakh electric vehicle have been sold in India since 2017 out of which 11.7 lakh were sold during 2022-23 and 14.4 lakh were sold till Jan 2024, according to Society of Manufacturer of Electric Vehicles (SMEV). A back-of-the-envelope calculation shows this is just 1.5% of the total sales. While the Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) has been making consistent efforts for facilitating the promotion of electric vehicles in the country, one of the key reasons for low adoption and sale of EVs is the abysmal number of charging stations in the country.

According to Ministry of Power, there are merely 12,146 public EV charging stations operational across the country as on Feb 2, 2024. Of which, Maharashtra has got the maximum (3079), followed by Delhi (1,886), Karnataka (1041), Uttar Pradesh (582), Rajasthan (500), and Telangana (481). India also fares badly when compared globally. A charger vs car comparison ratio in India stands at 1:135 whereas its globally in the range of 1:6-20. This ratio if continues will leave approx. 40 per cent short on the overall charging requirement for achieving the targets by 2030.