In a bid to boost the purchase of electric vehicles in the state, Haryana Government has proposed to waive off road tax, registration fee, state toll tax and provide an incentive of upto at least Rs one lakh for new vehicles.
The draft electric vehicle policy chalked out by the State Government to provide the much needed impetus to the electric mobility sector and reduce carbon emissions, is also aimed at generating employment in Haryana.
The electric vehicle (EV) draft policy has proposed 100 percent exemption of road tax on EVs purchased within Haryana state, applicable over the period of the validity of policy. The state will also exempt SGST on purchase of EVs manufactured within the state under certain conditions.
Apart from this, other proposed incentives include 100 percent interest free loans to the State Government employees for purchase of EVs in the state, exemption from paying state toll tax, 30 percent subsidy on road price of EVs in form of reimbursement directly to the buyer in the state on purchase of EVs and to the financer, if the electric vehicle is hypothecated, the dealers of EVs (non-transport) will be exempted from submitting of bank guarantee of Rs one lakh for Online Dealer Point Registration in the state and the EVs will also be registered on priority basis with a minimum token fee of Rs 100.
Under its ambitious policy, the State Government has proposed to convert 100 percent of bus fleet owned by State Transport Undertakings in Haryana into electric buses (battery electric vehicles or fuel cell EVs) by 2029, with the first phase of 100 percent conversion of bus fleet in Gurugram and Faridabad by 2024. It also proposed phasing out all fossil fuel based commercial fleets and logistics vehicles in Gurugram and Faridabad by 2024 and all cities by 2030.
All forms of government vehicles, including vehicles under government Corporations, Boards and government ambulances etc. are proposed to be converted to electric vehicles by 2024, as per the draft policy.
The Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala had recently held a meeting with the representatives of automobile manufacturers regarding the formulation of 'e-vehicle policy'. The government had also announced a discount of 25 percent to 600 farmers who book an e-tractor by September 30 in the state.
A senior officer of Haryana Government while talking to The Pioneer said, “A draft on e-vehicle policy has been prepared after a series of consultations with stakeholders and various government Departments. The policy aims to make Haryana a global hub for electric mobility development and manufacturing of EVs besides creating an eco-friendly environment by promoting EVs through exemption in taxes, permit fee etc and providing incentives. The policy will be finalized soon and rolled out by the State.”
The officer said that test rides in collaboration with various vehicle manufacturers, green days in the capital region and other cities will be promoted to take the new technology to the common man. Phase wise or city wise, promotional discounted tariffs will also be offered for charging battery EVs, he said.
The government planned to prepare an electric mobility blueprint for the state for a phase wise transition to EVs. It is also proposed to provide online registration of EVs, the officer added.
For developing charging infra, the draft policy has planned installation of charging infrastructure every 50 km on highways, other major roads in the state. The government buildings will prepare a roadmap to set up charging or swapping stations in all of its parking spaces while all petrol pumps will be asked to have charging stations and battery banks.
An extra incentive for a period of six months from the date of issuance of policy is proposed to be provided to the buyers who intend to purchase e-rickshaw or carts, electric cars below Rs 10 lakh and above Rs 10 lakh. It has been proposed to issue these buyers incentive coupons of upto at least Rs one lakh.
Not only this, the government has also proposed special incentives for mega integrated automobile projects and ultra-mega battery as well as to lithium battery manufacturing plants on a case to case basis.
For development of electric mobility industrial parks, the government has proposed to allocate 100 to 200 acres of land for developing such parks with plug and play internal infrastructure, common facilities and necessary external infrastructure. An incubation center for handholding startups will also be planned in the EVs park, the draft policy stated.
To boost investments from private infrastructure developers, the government has planned allocation of land across major cities for setting up charging, battery banks or battery swapping stations in a form similar to a contemporary fuel station as per statutory clearances. Also, the existing private buildings such as malls and other commercial buildings will be incentivized to set up charging, battery banks or battery swapping stations, as per the draft policy.