Govt Will Never ‘Ban’ Petrol, Diesel Vehicles In India; But Focus On Electric Vehicles

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said that although the government is promoting the adoption of electric vehicles and use of alternative fuels, it will not stop registration of internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles.

Petrol, Diesel Cars And EVs Can Coexist

Alternative fuels include ethanol, bio-LNG, and green hydrogen.

He said that the government is also pushing to use 50% ethanol in aviation fuel.

He feels that nothing has to be made mandatory since EVs have received good public response going by the increase in sales.

250 startups are working on e-vehicles which should lower its costs.

Proposal To Ban ICE Vehicles Rejected

A proposal was made back in 2019 to ban the use of three wheelers and two wheelers by 2025.

This was met with opposition from auto companies which reasoned that a blanket ban on petrol and diesel vehicles won’t help the cause of green vehicles.

Even as countries around the world move towards zero use of ICE vehicles by 2030, there is no such development from the Indian government’s side.

Policies In Place To Promote Adoption

It is, however, incentivising the use of EVs by offering various incentives and schemes for EV buyers.

One of them is a scrappage policy to reduce polluting vehicles on road and to promote the use of flex fuel engines in vehicles. 

It introduced the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Strong) Hybrid and Electric Vehicles in India or FAME India scheme in 2015.

It offers subsidies to encourage residents to opt for EVs.

EV Costs To Come Down

Gadkari believes that the cost of EVs will be on par with petrol and diesel vehicles by 2024.

The present costs are high since the number of EVs is less, but this can soon change given the number of startups actively working on production of EVs.

Major automakers have also started making their presence felt in the EV market.

The government is also working on building a robust charging infrastructure and aims to install 600 EV charging points across major highways by 2023.

These stations could also be powered by renewable sources like solar or wind electricity.