EV Unplugged

Electric vehicles are crucial to India’s climate change plan. But reliance on China for imports and technology constraints remain hurdles the sector needs to overcome

- Pushpita Dey

A quiet revolution was taking place on India's roads in 1983. On December 14, the Maruti 800 was rolled out, offering an internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle at an affordable price to middle-class households. The small car with big dreams paved the way for mass adoption of ICE vehicles and changed the dynamics of the auto industry.

More than 40 years later, the government is planning a second coming in the automobile sectorthis time through the mass adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). Part of this strategy is 30@30, which aims at a 30% share of EVs in new sales by 2030. Automakers are already moving towards electrification; several have announced phase-out dates for ICE vehicles.

In India, Suzuki expects 15% of its sales to come from EVs by 2030. Tata Motors plans to achieve 50% sales from EVs, globally, by the same year. At a convention of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) in September, Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari said the EV market will have 1 crore annual sales by 2030. But a number of hurdles have to be crossed to meet this ambitious target.

Facing an Obstacle Course

Among other initiatives, the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan announced in 2020 includes a vision for energy independence by 2047.

The government also launched a production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme to boost EV manufacturing and approved an EV manufacturing scheme in March 2024 to give impetus to its Make in India initiative.

The plethora of schemes aside, the EV sector is still some way off from becoming "atmanirbhar". Supply of raw materials, technology and import dependence, particularly on China, have been consistently rising. A Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) report warns that China's automobile industry, buoyed by substantial state support, has rapidly advanced in EV technology, making it a leading exporter of EVs and related components.