Delhi's Ambitious EV Overhaul: A Step Towards Cleaner Streets

Delhi's EV Policy 2.0 aims to revolutionize the city's electric vehicle infrastructure with a significant boost in funding for research, public charging, battery swapping, and retrofitting conventional vehicles. The policy seeks to enhance adoption through financial incentives and removal of polluting vehicles.

The Delhi government's new electric vehicle (EV) policy, known as EV Policy 2.0, is set to transform the city's approach to electric mobility, with a keen focus on enhancing public charging infrastructure and research initiatives. Officials indicate that the policy, which is nearing finalization, recommends increasing research and development funding from Rs 5 crore to Rs 100 crore, aiming for a robust EV ecosystem in the capital.

A major component of the policy is the establishment of 1,000 public charging stations, each receiving Rs 15 lakh, underscoring the government's commitment to facilitating easy access to charging facilities. The policy also proposes the creation of extensive battery swapping stations across 1,000 locations, with incentives of Rs 6 lakh per unit. Additionally, the plan includes installing 15,000 AC charging points and 2,000 DC charging points, funded by an Rs 8 crore allocation.

In an effort to support the transition from conventional vehicles to electric counterparts, the policy will focus on retrofitting existing internal combustion engine vehicles, enabling 50,000 conversions with a proposed outlay of 5 crore. The Delhi Chief Minister, Rekha Gupta, highlighted the policy's comprehensive approach, which targets substantial financial incentives, infrastructure expansion, and the removal of polluting vehicles to foster cleaner urban environments. The policy is expected to offer subsidies to balance cost disparities between traditional and electric vehicles, alongside a scrappage incentive scheme.

(With inputs from agencies.)