India has more than 1.8 million registered electric vehicles (EVs), with Uttar Pradesh accounting for nearly 23% of the total at 0.41 million, Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport and Highways, said in a written reply in Lok Sabha.

The other states with a significant number of EVs include Delhi (0.18 million), Maharashtra (0.18 million), Karnataka (0.15 million), Rajasthan (0.12 million), Tamil Nadu (0.11 million), and Bihar (0.11 million).

Of the total EVs in the country, more than half, or 0.92 million, are three-wheelers used for commercial transport. This is followed by 0.8 million two-wheelers meant for personal use.

Further, the parliament reply said that the country has 5,151 operational EV charging stations.

Central and state governments in India have issued enabling policies for the widespread adoption of EVs to cut emissions.

However, a lack of benchmarks in battery technologies has threatened to derail consumers’ interest due to fire incidents in the EVs.

In September, the Central government amended its policy on battery safety standards to provide additional safety requirements related to battery cells, battery management systems (BMS), onboard chargers, battery pack designs, and thermal propagation due to internal short circuits leading to fires.

Further, in a bid to keep EV regulations updated, the government recently amended the charging infrastructure guidelines for EVs. The amendments said that the public charging stations must have the feature of the prepaid collection of service charges with updated rates and discounts for solar hours.

To promote the manufacturing and usage of electric and battery eco-friendly vehicles in the country, the Central government launched the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles in India (FAME India) Program in 2015.

The program is aimed at reducing dependency on fossil fuels and addressing issues of vehicular emissions.

Currently, Phase II of the FAME India Program is being implemented for five years from April 1, 2019, with total budgetary support of ₹100 billion ($1.2 billion). This phase is focused on supporting the electrification of public and shared transportation.

With countries looking at ways to cut emissions and meet climate goals, the global sale of EVs is expected to surge. A recent study said that the adoption of zero-emission vehicles accelerated in 2022 across markets. It is estimated that 60% more EVs, totaling 10.6 million, will be sold globally in the current year compared to 2021.