The Delhi government launched the Electric Vehicle Policy on Friday. An EV Cell will also be set up to implement this policy.

“We have notified the Electric Vehicle Policy today. There are two reasons for coming up with this policy, first to give a boost to the economy in the times of Covid-19 pandemic and second to reduce the pollution levels in the National Capital,” said Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Reduction in pollution levels

There has been a reduction of 25 per cent in the pollution levels in the last few years but the aim is to redue it further, he added. Delhi government will also give financial assistance to those buying electric vehicles under the EV Policy.

They will be get a subsidy of ₹30,000 on the purchase of 2-wheelers, ₹1.5 lakh on cars and ₹ 30,000 on auto-rickshaws, e-rickshaws and freight vehicle.

“Our model EPluto 7G is designed to deliver optimum performance for urban commute. With this subsidy amount the upfront cost of EPluto 7G model will come down further by 20 per cent compared to similar class of petrol scooters and the total cost of ownership compared to a petrol is upto 80 per cent lesser,” said Rohit Vadera, Chief Executive Officer, PURE EV .

Within the next year, Delhi government aims to induct 35,000 e-vehicles. It also hopes 5 lakh new electric vehicles will be registered in the next five years, he added.

“Delhi Electric Vehicle Policy would provide positive momentum in a time when the industry is weathering the adverse effects of Covid-19 pandemic. We hope that these fiscal and non-fiscal incentives will help the industry in not only coming back to its feet but also to take steady strides ahead,” said Jitendra Shah, MD, Jitendra New EV tech.

Meanwhile, Delhi Cabinet last month has announced reduction in Value Added Tax (VAT) on diesel from 30 per cent to 16.75 per cent. With this decision, the prices of diesel to reduce from ₹82 to ₹73.64. Diesel will be cheaper by ₹8.36 per litre in the national capital.