Ahmedabad: There are far more diesel engines than petrol engines, and CNG vehicles are a distant third, despite an organized campaign to promote them in the past. While the state and central governments have been pushing for the switch to EVs, they remain a tiny sliver of the overall number of vehicles registered with the Ahmedabad RTO.
Six monthly numbers (April-September) of vehicle registrations with Ahmedabad Regional Transport Authority show that battery-operated vehicles have not caught on with the public yet.
Some 12,694 petrol vehicles were registered with the Ahmedabad RTO between April 1 and September 30, while 3,706 diesel vehicles were registered in the same period. Registration of petrol/CNG vehicles in the six month period is 1,003, battery-operated vehicles accounted for a mere 71 registrations.
According to automobile experts, the energy department of Gujarat is yet to decide on a policy for battery charging stations and price of charging vehicles. The state announced the Gujarat Electric Vehicles Policy-2021 on July 1, which grants subsidy for battery-operated vehicles. According to one official, the maximum subsidy decided by the state for two-wheelers is Rs 20,000, Rs 50,000 for three-wheelers and Rs 1,50,000 for four-wheelers. The cap fixed is Rs 10,000 per kilowatt per hour (kwh). The benefits, if any except that on pollution, are yet to be assessed.
Electric vehicles are finding few takers as of now, despite the subsidy policy announced.
Ali Gulamhusen Contractor, who recently bought an MG ZS EV, said, “I bought a fully-loaded vehicle with a sunroof for about Rs 24 lakh. The price difference between a petrol and diesel vehicle is Rs 2-4 lakh and that of a battery-operated variant is much higher. I spent a higher sum but am saving in terms of running costs because the cost benefit is 75 paise to Rs 1 per km, compared to Rs 5-6 in a petrol or diesel car. Besides, the benefit in terms of pollution is huge.”
