MoRTH allows Registration of electric vehicles without pre-fitted batteries

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has announced that it will allow the sale and registration of electric vehicles without pre-filled batteries. The Ministry has clarified and notified this to all the States and UTs.

Details of the Order

The registrations will depend on the type of approval certificates issued by the Test Agency, even after this decision, though no specifications such as Make/Type or other details will be required to register the vehicle apart from the motor number. But, it has to be ensured that the prototype vehicle and the batteries will have to be approved by the test agencies as per Rule 126 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989.

Process of Registration under the New Rules

For the process, FORM 21 (Sale Certificate), FORM 22 (Roadworthiness Certificate from the manufacturer) and FORM 22A (Roadworthiness Certificate issued for Motor Vehicles where fabrication of the body is done separately) have been modified to accommodate the new regulation which will be required for Rule 47 (Application for registration of Motor Vehicles) of the CMVR 1989, clearly specifying engine number / electric motor number of the vehicle.

Significance

This rule is going to promote the electric two-wheelers and three-wheeler vehicles in the country. The purpose and benefit of accepting vehicles without batteries will help delink the cost of the battery which is around 30-40% of the total vehicle cost. The overall cost will be reduced due to this decision and it will help in the promotion of EVs in the country.

Electric Vehicle Policy in India

The government has set a target of electric vehicles constituting 30% of the new sales of cars and two-wheelers by 2030 from less than 1% today. Various initiatives have been launched by the government to realize this objective:

• National Electric Mobility Mission Plan: Launched in 2013, this is aimed at achieving national fuel security by promoting hybrid and electric vehicles in the country.
• FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles in India): It was launched in 2015 with the objective to support hybrid and electric cars market development and manufacturing ecosystem. This has four focus areas – Technology Development, Demand Creation, Pilot Projects and Charging Infra Creation in the country.
• FAME II: Phase II of FAME is aimed at giving a push to the EVs in public transport and also seeks to encourage the adoption of EVs by way of market creation and demand aggregation. It is meant for the holistic development of the EV industry.

Month: Current Affairs - August, 2020