Indian govt to allow registration of electric vehicles without batteries

The key component in an electric vehicle (EV) is the battery unit and the range of the vehicle is determined by its capacity and efficiency. However, it also constitutes 30%-40% of the total cost of the vehicle. In order to bring down prices and increase adoption, the Indian government has taken an important decision to promote the use of EVs in the country. Vehicles that don’t come pre-fitted with batteries will be allowed to register.

According to a statement by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, vehicles without batteries can be sold and registered based on the type approval certificate issued by the Test Agency. Further, there is no need to specify the Make/Type or any other details of the battery for the purpose of registration. However, the prototype of the electrical vehicle, and the battery (regular battery or the swappable battery) is required to be type approved by the test Agencies specified under Rule 126 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989.

For the promotion of electrical two wheelers and three wheeler vehicles, there are recommendations brought to the notice of the Ministry to delink the cost of battery (which accounts for 30-40% of the total cost) from the vehicle cost. Vehicles could then also be sold in the market without the battery. This will make the upfront cost of the electrical 2 wheeler (2W) and 3 wheelers (3W) to be lower than ICE 2 and 3W. The battery could be provided separately by the OEM or the energy service provider.

In order to push the electric vehicle ecosystem the government is trying to accelerate the acceptance of electric vehicles. Increasing pollution levels and often featuring in the list of world’s most polluted cities has driven the government to take substantial measures towards electric mobility. The statement released by the ministry claims that this will not only protect the environment and reduce the oft import bill but also provide opportunities to sun rise industry.