Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Tuesday that in the next two years, the price of electric vehicles (EVs) would be at par with petrol and diesel-run automobiles.
The Minister also stressed the need to drastically cut down the whopping 1.50 lakh road accident deaths in India, saying his Ministry was working on reducing the ‘black-spots’ which are accident-prone areas.
Replying in the Lok Sabha on the Demands for Grants for Road Transport and Highways Ministry, 2022-23, Gadkari said the transport and energy scene is rapidly changing with electric and solar energy, ethanol and hydrogen going to be the main drivers for replacing conventional energy. This, he said, would greatly improve the environment, noise pollution and cut-down energy imports.
He said fast construction of roads and highways has reduced the time and cost of travelling manifold. “Now, Meerut can be reached in 35 minutes from Delhi, and Jaipur in two hours, Dehradun in two hours and Amritsar in four. Road connectivity would improve so much in the coming years that one could travel to Ladakh to Srinagar and then straightaway drive to Mumbai,” he added.
Gadkari said transport on roads could partly be replaced by waterways, ropeways and even flying buses.
Urging MPs to adopt hydrogen technologies for transport, Gadkari asked them to take the initiative in their respective districts for converting sewage water to produce green hydrogen.Hydrogen will soon be the cheapest fuel alternative, he said and invited MPs to his house to be driven in a hydrogen-fueled vehicle.
"I can say that within a maximum of two years, the cost of electric scooters, cars and autorickshaws will be the same as their petrol-driven versions. Prices of lithium-ion batteries are coming down. We are developing this chemistry of zinc-ion, aluminum-ion, sodium-ion batteries. If on petrol, you are spending Rs 100, then on an EV you will spend Rs 10 (for using)," Gadkari said.
The Minister expressed concern over 1.50 lakh annual deaths in road accidents in the country and said, these could only be reduced with the support of the public and House members, as making a law alone would not help.
Gadkari said his Ministry immediately repairs the “black –spots” where frequent accidents take place.
He said one of the reasons is that people get a driving licence without a proper test. “India is a country where you get a driving licence very easily. Accidents also happen as we don’t follow laws,” he said.