SHILLONG, March 3: Come April 1 and the Meghalaya Electric Vehicle Policy, 2021, will come into effect throughout the state. The move is expected to go a long way in reducing the carbon footprint besides giving relief to the people from the increasing prices of fuel.
The policy, approved by the state government, will remain valid till March 31, 2026.
An official said Meghalaya has an extensive green cover but increasing pollution levels due to a steep rise in the number of conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles have been a major concern for the government.
Official data say only 11 of the 4 lakh vehicles registered in the state till date are electric.
During the policy period, the government aims to have at least 15% of the total fleet registered in the next five years to be electric vehicles (EVs). This works out to about 20,000 EVs.
The target will contribute towards saving about 50 lakh litres of fuel and a reduction of about 10,000 kg of carbon dioxide (CO2) per day. The annual CO2 reduction would be 35.6 lakh kg.
“This will lead towards an energy-secure India,” an official told The Shillong Times on Wednesday.
Towards achieving this objective, the state government will provide purchase incentives to early adopters for a limited number of EVs based on the energy capacity in kilowatt-hour.
This incentive – Rs 20,000 each for the first 3,500 electric two-wheelers – will be routed through dealers of EVs.
To avail of the incentive, the ex-factory price of an electric two-wheeler should not exceed Rs 1.5 lakh.
Similarly, a purchase incentive of Rs 20,000 each will be given for the first 200 electric three-wheelers if their ex-factory price does not exceed Rs 5 lakh.
In addition, purchase incentives of about Rs 60,000 each will be given to the first 2,500 electric four-wheelers, the ex-factory price of such vehicles not exceeding Rs 15 lakh.
Officials also said purchase incentives of about Rs 5,200 will be given to the first 30 strong hybrid four-wheelers, the ex-factory price of such vehicles not exceeding Rs 15 lakh.
The first 30 electric buses, with an ex-factory price of up to Rs 2 crore per unit, will also be eligible for purchase incentives of Rs 10 lakh each. The Meghalaya Transport Corporation buses too will be replaced with electric buses in a phased manner. In the Tourism sector, certain tourist spots will be identified for the exclusive use of EVs to provide transport services in an environmental-friendly manner.
The state government will also waive off the registration fee for all EVs purchased during the policy period.
Officials said a state-level committee would be constituted for implementing the Meghalaya EV Policy, 2021.
Responding to a query, the official said that the incentives being offered under the EV policy shall be financed through a non-lapsable Meghalaya Electric Vehicle Adoption Fund (MEV AF) to be set up for this purpose.
Another objective of the policy is to create an enabling environment to support the setting up of robust infrastructure for EVs including requisite power supply, a network of charging stations with favourable power tariff and adequate service centres.
The policy also focuses on the creation of a pool of skilled workforce for the EV industry in collaboration with technical institutions in the state and the policy also mandates the adoption of EVs in the government sector.