India's capital part of aggressive electric vehicle targets in bid to curb air pollution

NEW DELHI (AP) — In an affluent neighborhood in Delhi, electric vehicle charging stations near a popular shopping area were busy with drivers powering up their scooters, trucks and cars. India’s capital city is in dire need of more charging facilities, EV drivers say, to implement an ambitious plan to phase out gas vehicles in one of the world’s most polluted cities. “Charging facilities are not up to the mark yet,” said Shyam Singh, a marketing executive who owns a two-wheel electric scooter, adding that it is hard for long-distance drivers to switch to EVs because the current battery range is not enough.

Delhi uses a bold approach to mainstream EVs Delhi adopted a new policy on July 1 that aims to make the vast majority of newly registered vehicles electric by 2027. While existing gas-powered vehicles won’t be banned, their numbers are expected to dwindle in the coming years. Energy experts say the plan is one of the country’s most ambitious electric-vehicle policies and a significant step toward improving the city’s air quality and reducing pollution.

The policy provides EV buyers with subsidies and waivers on registration fees and some road taxes, incentives to scrap gas vehicles, and it offers plans to expand the charging infrastructure. It also targets two- and three-wheelers that make up nearly 70% of vehicles in the city: Starting in 2027, any newly registered three-wheeled vehicles and small trucks must be electric, with two-wheelers the following year. Currently, only about 5% of the 8.7 million vehicles registered in Delhi are electric.

But EV registrations have been increasing, with over 100,000 in the past year, most of them two- and three-wheelers. Registrations for new gas-powered cars and bigger trucks will still be allowed for the time being. The plan, which is expected to cost the local government 150 billion rupees ($1.5 billion), will offer cash amounts of up to 50,000 rupees ($522) for residents who purchase EVs and up to 100,000 rupees ($1,044) for those who scrap their old gasoline-powered vehicles.

“Delhi’s EV policy is one of the most ambitious policies that I have seen in India,” said Jaideep Saraswat, who leads work on clean power and electric mobility at the Vasudha Foundation. The deadlines, he added, send a signal to automakers and consumers that change is “inevitable.” While states including Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana a…