Government Working To Reduce GST Rates On Electric Vehicles: Niti Aayog

The coronavirus pandemic might have decelerated things a bit but the government seems to be firm with its targets when it comes to adoption of cleaner mobility solutions. In an interactive session with students of the first batch of MS (Research) in e-mobility programme which was organised by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Guwahati, Amitabh Kant, CEO- Niti Aayog said that the government has been trying to bring down the tax rates on electric vehicles (EVs) which is charged at 5 per cent at present compared to 28 per cent for other vehicles. It is also trying to reduce the tax rates on Hybrid vehicles.

Also Read: India To Become Manufacturing Hub For Electric Vehicles By 2025: Government

Government has extended the validation of the FAME II Scheme till September 30.

Addressing the students, Kant said, "We also give tax exemption, up to Rs 1 lakh, to people who are buying electric vehicles. As a consequence of all this, the focus on electrification will be huge and if India has to emerge as a leader in clean, connected and shared mobility, there are two important things to keep in mind one is that India is a major user of two- and three-wheelers and 80 per cent of people travel in these vehicles. Second, battery will be an important component. Battery manufacturing and storage will be a key component and storage will have to be linked to renewable energy integration with the grid."

Also Read: FAME II Scheme's Validity Extended Till September 2020

Last month Nitin Gadkari had invited private investment for the pilot project for running electric buses with private investment.

The focus is not only on personal mobility solutions, there's a greater emphasis on electrification of public transport as well. The Ministry of Road, Transport & Highways (MoRTH)- Nitin Gadkari has been promoting electric buses for quite some time and last month had invited private investment for the pilot project. In June, the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Department of Heavy Industry had extended the validation of the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles II (FAME II) scheme for a period of three months. All registered automaker under the FAME II scheme will now be able to avail the benefits till September 30, 2020.

Source: Times Of India