Maharashtra govt will buy or rent only EVs from January 1, instead of April 1, says Aaditya Thackeray

In a rush to push e-mobility and reduce the use of petrol and diesel vehicles as proposed in the state’s Electric Vehicle Policy, the Maharashtra Government has advanced the date from which it will purchase or rent only EVs for the government, urban local bodies and corporations to January 1, instead of the earlier announced April 1, 2022.

Maharashtra Environment and Tourism Development Minister Aaditya Thackeray said, “In keeping with our commitment to clean mobility and encouraging citizens, the Govt of Maharashtra has decided to implement the decision of Purchasing or Renting only Electric Vehicles for Govt/ Urban Local Bodies/ Corporations from 1st January 2022 instead of 1st April 2022.”

He further added, “I’m grateful to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, DCM Ajit Pawar and RM Balasaheb Thorat for their support to @MahaEnvCC’s climate action policies and ensuring that the government mechanisms go green too, to encourage citizens to walk alongside in climate action.”

Last week, Aaditya had said that encouraged by the response to the EV Policy 2021, the Maharashtra Government had decided to extend the ‘early bird discount’ on electric vehicles till March 31, 2022.

“Maharashtra is leading the way in electric mobility with our EV policy! We are looking at a huge shift towards EVs, and we are committed to supporting alternate clean fuel mobility,” he said.

The policy proposes to achieve 25 per cent electrification of public transport and last-mile delivery vehicles by 2025 in the five targeted urban agglomeration in the state, convert 15 per cent of Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation’s existing bus fleet to electric, make Maharashtra the country’s top producer of BEVs (battery electric vehicles) in India in terms of annual production capacity. Besides, the policy aims to target establishment of at least one Gigafactory for the manufacturing of advanced chemistry cell batteries and promote research and development, innovation and skill development across the EV eco system.

The government targets 10 per cent of EVs for new vehicle registration, 10 per cent two-wheelers, 20 per cent three-wheelers and 5 per cent four-wheelers in 2025. At least 25 per cent of the urban fleet operated by fleet aggregators/operators in the state will be EVs by 2025. This will apply to e-commerce companies, last mile companies, last-mile delivery, logistic players and mobility aggregators operating in urban areas.

In the five targeted urban areas, the government aims to achieve 25 per cent electrification of public transport by 2025 and convert the existing MSRTC bus fleet to 15 per cent electric fleet. The government has also set city wise targets for public and semi-public charging stations and also on highways.