In his most powerful remarks but against the government’s plan to push India’s car industry to undertake electronic vehicles (EVs), Rajiv Bajaj, MD of Bajaj Auto, stated the transition to EVs has to be in a phased way and that an entire ban on inner combustion engines isn’t always an answer.
Appreciating the government’s push in the EV space, Bajaj stated this ought to assist generate purchaser interest and call for EVs when the automobile enterprise is present process a difficult segment.
Here are the edited excerpts of his interview with CNBC-TV18:
Q: How do you see most of these incentives which can be aimed closer to selling electric cars? How do you spot those provisions?
A: Personably, in precept, my stand has constantly been that I am no longer in favor of incentives because I feel that any era or product must be sustainable. However, I take the factor that one needs some guide for liftoff; I remember the fact that. However, I am always careful because I have learned to revel in that one ought not to be too easily seduced via these incentives because incentives that come today can pass just as effortlessly tomorrow. So, from the point of view of the producer or the entrepreneur, I would say you have to be firm nonetheless fixated on turning in a sustainable answer. Having stated that in phrases of city pollutants, electric-powered automobiles are more and more turning into an attractive option, and it’s an amazing concept in that feeling for the government to enable anyone to transport in that direction.
Q: To what volume do you experience removing import responsibility on lithium‐ion batteries, exemption of certain EV components from custom responsibility, 1. Five lakh tax reduction on EV loans and discount in GST lessen the fee of a two-wheeler electric car?
A: These are very significant reductions. I have no longer performed the exact math; however, if you compare just GST 28 instead of five percent for IC engines and EVs, respectively, I mean 23 percent reduction is a whopping sum. The Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME) benefit of Rs 10,000 is a large amount of cash, and some of the reductions in the import responsibilities can even help. So, I might say the government has actually placed its pleasant foot forward in supplying a tremendous package to individuals who are inquisitive about placing out accurate pleasant electric-powered cars due to the fact we should make the point that these are all advantages which might be available, specifically the FAME gain, to people who are going to make electric-powered cars that meet sure first-class requirements, sure minimal requirements in terms of diverse performance parameters, which is a great element due to the fact I do no longer think we want our u . S. A. And our roads to become a dumping ground for cheap imports.
And we all recognize that we are also involved with what will occur when the following step of BS-VI comes into place. Prices move up even similarly due to the fact we had seen best 6 months again when insurance cost went up or these days when anti-lock braking gadget (ABS), blended braking system (CBS) came into play what befell. So, I assume perilous, very unsure, challenging times where one has to stay the path and wait it out.
Automobile industry not a ‘chai ka stall’, EV transition have to be executed in phases, says Rajiv Bajaj of Bajaj Auto
