India to be a manufacturing hub for electric vehicles within five years

India will become a manufacturing hub for electric vehicles as reported by Union Minister for Road Transport& Highways and MSMEs Shri Nitin Gadkari. The Government is trying to extend best possible concessions to this sector, and has lowered the GST on electrical vehicles to 12 per cent.

Daily Current Affairs Quiz 2020

Key-Points

The Government released a two-pronged strategy aimed at both buyers and manufacturers, in which it offers $1.4 billion in subsidies to buyers while imposing a hike on import tariffs to increase manufacturing of these vehicles by domestic companies.

The National Electric Mobility Mission Plan 2020 was launched by the Government of India in 2020 with the aim of improving the national fuel security through the promotion of hybrid and electric vehicles.

The Government started Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles (FAME) scheme which provides incentives for purchasing electric vehicles. Phase I of the scheme lasted from 2015 to 2019, while Phase II began in 2019 and is planned to be completed in 2022.

The Delhi Government recently approved 1000 Electric buses to be used in Delhi’s public transport system.

The Maharashtra Government is focusing on increasing EV use in the state by proposing to exempt EV’s from road tax and providing a 15% subsidy to the first lakh EV’s registered in the state.