EV, hybrid adoption highest in UP; sales up 20% in June-Dec

Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Karnataka are in the top three in the country when it comes to the highest number of electric vehicle and hybrid vehicle registrations, the government data shows.

In volume terms, UP has a total of 7.75 lakh electric and hybrid vehicles out of the total 4.5 crore vehicles registered in the state, thus accounting for 1.7% of the total vehicles.

With 5.1 lakh EVs and hybrid vehicles, Maharashtra follows UP, accounting for 1.45% of the total 3.5 crore vehicles in the state. Karnataka has 3.8 registered EV and hybrid vehicles of the total 3.06 crore vehicles registered in the state, accounting for 1.27%.

Two more states in the top five tally are -- Delhi (3.34 lakh) and Tamil Nadu (2.82 lakh). Of the total number of vehicles registered in these states, the EVs plus hybrids account for 2.31% and 0.87%.

As a percentage of the total vehicles in a state, EV and hybrid adoption is the highest in smaller states like Assam (2.88%), Tripura (2.44%), Delhi (2.31%), Chandigarh (2.12%), and Uttarakhand (1.77%) and Bihar (1.77%).

The top five states with the maximum number of vehicles, including petrol, diesel, hybrid and electric, are UP (4.5 crore), Maharashtra (3.56 crore), Tamil Nadu (3.24 crore), and Karnataka (3.06 crore).

India far behind global average

Overall, there are 43,78,687 EVs plus hybrid vehicles registered in the country of the total 35,99,80,416 vehicles, which accounts for just 1.22%, a percentage that's way below than peer economies like China, the US and EU countries.

China despite being the largest car market in the world also has an impressive rate of 22% when it comes to EV adoption, an analysis by US-based non-profit organisation World Resources Institute (WRI) shows. Two other biggest car markets -- the US (6%) and EU (12%) -- are far behind when it comes to EV adoption but the market is growing rapidly in these countries. The global EV adoption rate for the year 2022 stood at 10%.

Despite their efforts, though, countries seem far behind the global goal of having 75-95% of the total passenger vehicles as EVs to offset the climate change impacts by 2030 and to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. For that to be a reality, the average annual growth rate for the next eight years should be around 31%.

EV adoption increasing, says govt

The government says it's doing its bit to enhance EV adoption. Minister of state for heavy industries, Krishan Pal Gurjar, in a written reply in Parliament today, said initiatives like FAME India, which had a budgetary outlay of ₹10,000 crore and PLI scheme for the automobile and auto component industry, with a budgetary outlay of ₹25,938 crore, are intended to boost EV and hybrids sales in the country. He says the PLI Scheme on Advanced Chemistry Cells Battery Storage also provides a budgetary outlay worth ₹18,100 crore, which is boosting EVs sales.

Other initiatives like a cut in GST on EVs and chargers, exemption from permit requirements and road tax waive-off push are also making it easier for people to buy EVs, he says.

The Union minister says the total number of electric vehicles registered from June 2023 till December 2023 so far stands at 8,19,223, which is higher than 6,84,789 EVs purchased during the same period last year. In November alone, 1,53,022 EVs were bought, up 20% from 1,21,601 during the same period last year.