The Auto Expo opened with a bang in the national capital on Friday, showcasing electric cars (EVs) from over 70 domestic and foreign automakers. According to Japan’s NHK World Foreign Program, this year’s Auto Expo is focused on electric vehicles. In the Indian market for passenger cars, Maruti Suzuki, a division of Japan’s Suzuki Motor, controls the majority of the market.
Suzuki Toshihiro, president of Suzuki Motor, said that electric vehicles have emerged as a viable option for vehicle owners and that synthetic fuel and hydrogen are synthetic-era alternatives in the automobile space, NHK World reported. He also stressed the importance of fully considering customer needs, the report said.
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India has been battling with severe air pollution for years, with the central government planning to reduce vehicular pollution. As part of its plan to cut vehicular pollution, the government will work on encouraging 30 percent of vehicle owners to switch to EVs by 2030.
According to a NHK World report, India’s population of 1.4 billion cars is expected to grow further. Maruti Suzuki’s latest concept EV was the main attraction at the event. The NHK World report claims that the sports utility vehicle (SUV) can travel 550 kilometers on a single charge and the manufacturer aims to have it on sale in the Indian automotive market by 2025.
Other manufacturers in the Indian auto space such as Tata Motors and South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Company also showcased their electric vehicles at the event. Earlier, New Delhi created history by achieving the highest ever State/UT monthly electric vehicle sales in the country.
Till December last year, New Delhi registered 7,046 electric vehicles, a year-on-year growth of 86 per cent. Since the launch of the percentage policy, the UT registered 93,239 electric vehicles, of which two-wheelers accounted for almost 55 percent of the total EV sales in the year 2022.
Addressing the media, Transport Minister Kailash Gehlot said that Delhi has always led from the front in registration and sale of electric vehicles, making it the EV capital of the country and is ready with necessary private and public charging infrastructure . There are 2300+ charging points and 200+ battery swapping stations operating across the city. Delhi’s EV policy was launched on August 7, 2020, identifying 2-wheelers (2W) and 3-wheelers (3W) as priority vehicle segments.
(With ANI inputs)