The Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) has come together with the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) to establish electric vehicle charging stations in Greater Noida.

This electric vehicle (EV) charging station can charge four vehicles at a time. This is part of an ongoing effort by the government to curb pollution and promote the uptake of EVs in the country. To encourage vehicle owners to utilize the station, the entities are providing free charging in the interim.

Greater Noida, Noida, Gurugram, Faridabad and Delhi are under the grip of toxic levels of air pollution. The air quality is poor in these cities throughout the year. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) in 2015 had discontinued the use of petrol vehicles older than fifteen years and diesel vehicles older than ten years in the National Capital Region (NCR) to curtail air pollution and its resulting hazards.

The state and central government have been vehemently trying to reduce air pollution in these regions by improving the public transport system and other measures in this regard. The government has also come up with an EV adoption roadmap while allocating subsidies in manufacturing and loans for EVs.

Earlier, the government cut the rate of Goods and Services Tax (GST) on electric vehicles (EVs) in a move to increase electric mobility in the country. The 36^th GST Council meeting was chaired by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, wherein the GST on EVs was reduced from 12% to 5%.

The union cabinet had recently approved a proposal for the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME India) in India Phase II program. The program’s objective is to promote the adoption of clean mobility in the country.

Private and public entities alike are setting up EV charging infrastructure in cities; Amara Raja, launched EV charging and battery swapping stations in collaboration with Tirupati Municipal Corporation (TMC). Tata Motors and Tata Power joined forces to set up around 300 EV charging stations by the end of FY 2020. Vakrangee, a technology-oriented company, also announced that it would establish charging infrastructure units for EVs across India. Government agencies and utilities have also been issuing tenders for empanelment and development of EV charging infrastructure, adding to the activity in the sector.

Ramya Ranganath is an Associate Editor and Writer for Mercom Communications India. Before joining Mercom, Ramya worked as a Senior Editor at a digital media supply chain solutions company. Throughout her career, she has developed end-to-end content for various companies in a wide range of domains, including renewables. Ramya holds a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from M.S. Ramaiah Institute of Technology and is passionate about environmental issues and permaculture.