Challenges posed by high cost in popularising hybrid and electric vehicles in India can be overcome with a focus on manufacturing components and the vehicles in India, a senior government official today said.
"The biggest challenge is cost and all of us would have to work on it so that people can afford and easily adopt this new technology. To make it cheaper, we would have to work for Make-in-India and (that) is the solution for making electric vehicle affordable," said Girish Shankar, Secretary, Ministry of the Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises.
He was addressing the National Workshop & Exhibition of FAME India.
Assuring the gathering the government's commitment towards electric mobility under its FAME India scheme, he sought feedback from the industry, saying it would help them create market and a self-sustainable model.
"There are complexities and challenges, but still we can address them... In this, not just the government, but OEMs would have to come up with firm plans," he said, adding that he expects forums including the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA) to play a crucial role in it.
FAME India - Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles in India - is part of the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan. The scheme envisages Rs 795 crore support in the first two fiscals that started last year.
According to Shankar, globally, hybrid models are being accepted and consumers are now able to afford it. In Europe, two lakh hybrid vehicles are self-sustainable without any government's support.
He cited China as a good example of "shifting very fast to hybrid and now moving towards electric mobility". "It's a very good example for us to follow," he said.
In Japan, there are more charging stations than petrol pumps, Shankar added.
"Apart from technology, we should take examples from other countries, and let us leapfrog and take advantage of available technology and guidelines from other experiences where we can move much faster than others," he said.
