The state of Andhra Pradesh is planning to use and promote electrical vehicles massively, as part of its plans to look at the future of mobility in urban cities.
Officials from several departments of the government on Friday held a 'Electric Mobility Stakeholder Meet' to identify key themes, and to discuss the development of a policy for electric mobility.
The meeting was attended by officials Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB), Department of Industries and Commerce, Department of Information Technology, Electronics and Communication, Department of Transport, Roads and Buildings and Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC).
Representatives of companies like Mahindra Electric, Hyundai, Nissan, Renault, Maruti Suzuki, Ashok Leyland, TVS Motors, Ola, Texas Instruments, ARM, Gayam Motors, Sun Mobility, Facor Group, Panasonic, Amara Raja, PLR Chambers and Goldman Sachs, were also present.
The APEDB spearheaded the ‘Electric Mobility Stakeholder Meet’ which was led by IT Minister Nara Lokesh.
“Subsidies on electric vehicles is not enough to spruce the market and instead an interplay of demand creation, technology development, pilot projects and charging infrastructure is the way forward,” Lokesh said.
Secretary of Department of Industries and Commerce, Solomon Arokiaraj said “Although manufacturing would have an added thrust in the electric mobility policy, specific emphasis would be given to innovation, startups and disruptive technology.”
“Andhra Pradesh has always believed in garnering consensus in policy making and this meet in Vijayawada is a testimony to this” he added.
J Krishna Kishore, Chief Executive Officer, APEDB said “This meet determines our common agenda and path forward to build policies on tangible results.”
“Apart from deliberating on the future of mobility, this meet would help define our route to a low-carbon economy by 2029” he added.
“An extensive network of swapping stations equipped to quickly 'refuel' EVs from multiple OEMs will go a long way in addressing lengthy charging times and range anxiety. To create a mutually supportive ecosystem that runs on an open architecture, it's important to have government and industry participation, to work together to standardize the interfaces,” Chetan Maini, Vice Chairman, SUN Mobility remarked.