Bhubaneswar: The state government on Tuesday released a draft ‘Odisha Electric Vehicle Policy 2025’ with an aim to promote use of EVs through adoption, adaptation, research & development apart from facilitating growth in employment for circulation among the stakeholders and general public.
As per the Commerce and Transport Department, any suggestion for inclusion or omission in the draft policy may be brought to the notice of the authorities within 30 days from the date of publication in the Odisha Gazette either in person, post or e-mail., ctsec.or@od.gov.in.
The Odisha Electric Vehicle Policy 2025 will be valid until December 31, 2030 from the date of notification. As per the draft policy the state government has proposed to provide incentive amounts ranging from Rs 20,000 to Rs 20,00,000.
A State Level Task Force has also been constituted comprising the Chief Secretary as Chairperson, Development Commissioner-cum-Additional Chief Secretary as Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, Commerce & Transport Department as Member-Convener and Secretary, Forest, Environment & Climate Change Department.
Signitifantly, the state government has set an ambitious roadmap to replace all vehicles engaged in its offices with EVs within six months while buses of all schools and educational institutes will be encouraged to make the shift within a year.
As per the draft, the Housing and Urban Development department will also convert all garbage and waste collection vehicles to EVs within six months.
Similarly, the Tourism and Forest and Environment departments will ensure that shuttle services in tourist sites and amusement parks shift to EVs within six months, while boating services will be made pedal-based or solar-electric hybrid within a year. The government-operated boats and ferries will also be converted to electric within 12 months.
Likewise, all government ambulances and PCR vans have been proposed to transition to EVs within a year of the notification of the policy that seeks to reduce dependency on fossil fuels, cut vehicular emissions and boost electric mobility across the state.
The government is also set to extend all the incentives provided to EV buyers in the 2021 policy.
The new policy proposes a flat Rs 2 lakh per vehicle on electric cars used for transport. The incentives for other transport vehicles have also been revised. There will be a Rs 5 lakh incentive for vehicles weighing more than 3.5 tonne and less than 7.5 tonne and Rs 7 lakh, Rs 16 lakh, Rs 18 lakh and Rs 20 lakh for less than 12 tonne, 18.5 tonne, 35 tonne and 55 tonne vehicles, respectively.
Check incentive amounts for different categories of electric vehicles:
The draft policy also proposes incentives to encourage retrofitting of existing vehicles. Retrofitted two-wheelers will receive a 30 pc reimbursement of costs, while three-wheelers and light goods carriers will receive 25 pc. Individuals and businesses replacing their old polluting vehicles at designated scrapping centres will also be eligible for subsidies.
The policy seeks a major push for charging infrastructure and to equip all fuel stations along state and national highways with at least one fast charging station, subject to technical feasibility, while OSRTC bus stations will be equipped with charging points. Viability gap funding has been proposed to support installation of DC fast charging stations over the next five years.
The government has set an immediate target of achieving 50 per cent (pc) EV adoption in all new vehicle registrations by 2030 with long-term goals of reaching 70 pc EVs and alternate fuel sales by 2036 and 80 pc by 2047.