Nitin Gadkari, the Union Road Transport and Highways Minister, has announced plans to introduce vehicles that will operate solely on ethanol as fuel.
During a gathering in Nagpur, Nitin Gadkari, the Union Road Transport and Highways Minister, shared his interaction with the chairman of Mercedes Benz, who informed him about the company's future focus on manufacturing exclusively electric vehicles. Gadkari highlighted this encounter, emphasizing the chairman's statement that electric vehicles would be their sole production in the coming years.
“We are bringing new vehicles that will run entirely on ethanol. Bajaj, TVS and Hero scooters will run 100 per cent on ethanol," the minister said.
The minister announced plans to introduce the Toyota Camry car in August, which will operate entirely on ethanol and produce 40 percent electricity. He stated that in comparison to petrol priced at ₹120 per litre, the cost of ethanol at ₹60 per litre would make the average price equivalent to ₹15 per litre.
Gadkari has recently also stated that truck manufacturers will soon be required to install air conditioning units inside the driver cabins.
“Before coming to this event today, I have signed the file that mandates air conditioning in truck driver compartments. We must ensure that people who drive the trucks are well taken of,” Nitin Gadkari said at an auto industry event recently.
"Our drivers operate vehicles in harsh temperatures of 43...47 degrees and we must imagine the condition of drivers. I was keen to introduce the AC cabin after I became a minister. But some people opposed it saying the cost of trucks will go up. Today, I have signed the file that all truck cabins will be AC cabins," he had said addressing the event called 'Desh Chaalak - Recognising those who move India' organised by Mahindra Logistics.
Gadkari additionally acknowledged the shortage of drivers in India, leading to truckers working long hours of 14-16 per day. He mentioned that other countries have regulations in place limiting the duration of truckers' duty. However, the minister did not specify a deadline for the introduction of trucks equipped with air-conditioned cabins. According to certain reports, the rollout is anticipated to commence in 2025.
(With inputs from PTI)
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