The pandemic has a multi-faceted and deep impact on the country. It has provided us an opportunity to grapple with the “old normal” of the transportation ecosystem. As per 2019 World Air Quality Report, 17 Indian cities were ranked as the most polluted amongst the top 25 cities. Studies have shown that pollution caused by vehicles forms a major component in the overall air pollution index (30-40% of the total).  The pandemic has given us a chance to move towards a “new normal:” more efficient, affordable and clean transportation for the local population. Making a shift towards electric vehicles will facilitate economic recovery by creating job opportunities in the manufacturing process of the e-vehicles and induce environmental recovery by introducing clean energy.

India is the second largest populous country in the world and has high population density. A large proportion of its population relies on public vehicles such as rickshaws, cabs and buses. Hence, the policymakers in our country have begun making efforts to establish a sustainable public transport framework in India. The government has collaborated with countries like Germany to provide the technological support to adopt the required changes and has begun introducing policies that discourages usage of non eco-friendly vehicles and encourages people to use green mobility. The government aims to achieve 15% of electric vehicles within the next 5 years and 30% electric vehicles by 2030 on Indian roads. For this, it has introduced many policies and plans like Sustainable Urban Transport Project, Smart Cities Mission and National Transit Oriented Environmental Policy. However, achieving the goals set still seems to be challenging.

Indian consumers still need to be convinced about shifting to e-mobility. People are still unaware about the benefits of using electric vehicles. All the government plans include high initial costs. This, coupled with lack of a charging infrastructure and electronic grid system in place to meet the required demands proves as major challenges to make a shift towards the electronic transportation ecosystem. Unlike the opportunities missed in the past, India should not step back and rather grab this transition opportunity to electric and eco-friendly mobility .

References

1. https://www.nrdc.org/experts/anjali-jaiswal/covid-19-recovery-scaling-electric-mobility-india-part-1

2. https://www.financialexpress.com/auto/car-news/electric-mobility-in-india-progress-so-far-and-the-challenges-that-lie-ahead/1734780/

3. https://www.orfonline.org/research/policymaking-towards-green-mobility-in-india/?amp