The Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy 2022 was enacted by the Chandigarh administration in September. In a significant decision made on Wednesday evening, the Chandigarh administration announced it would cease registering non-electric two-wheelers beginning on February 10. The order stated that this was done to achieve the goal of green and environmentally friendly transportation in “City Beautiful.” “The policy aims to promote electric mobility and discourage non-electric vehicles for the sake of a healthier environment. Waiver of road tax on electric and hybrid vehicles has been envisioned in the policy to encourage the use of electric vehicles. In order to limit and discourage the registration of non-electric vehicles, the policy stipulates a registration cap. The policy calls for a 10% reduction in the number of four-wheeled vehicles and a 35% reduction in the number of two-wheeled vehicles compared to the previous year. “Since the registration quota for non-electric two-wheelers has already been met for the current fiscal year, their registration must be halted immediately in order to implement the provisions of the EV Policy and to promote a greener Chandigarh,” it was added. Thus, it was decided that registration of non-electric two-wheelers would cease as of February 10 or later. “It is for the general public’s information that non-electric two-wheelers sold on or after February 10, 2023 will not be registered by the office of the Registering & Licensing Authority, UT, Chandigarh, in the current financial year, that is, until March 31, 2023, in accordance with the Electric Vehicle Policy 2022,” the notice stated. The registration of non-electric two-wheeled vehicles will resume on April 1, 2023, in accordance with permissible limits for the fiscal year 2023-2024. What is Chandigarh’s electric vehicle policy? In accordance with the Chandigarh EV policy, each year’s registration of e-vehicles is required to reach a minimum achievable target percentage. Similar to the first year, which is this year (2022), the achievable registration target for two-wheeler EV vehicles is 35%, and once 65% of the fuel-based two-wheeler vehicles are registered, there will be no more registrations of fuel-based two-wheelers in India. The owner of the two-wheeler must register it elsewhere, but not in Chandigarh. Administration-determined goals According to the policy, the minimum achievable target for e-two-wheelers and e-three-wheelers in the first year is 35%, whereas the minimum achievable target for e-three-wheelers and e-four-wheelers for goods is 20%. This year’s (the first year) goal for personal e-cars is 10%, while it is 40% for e-buses and 20% for commercial e-cars. In the second year, 2023, the minimum achievable target for e-two-wheelers and e-three-wheelers, i.e. passenger vehicles, is 70% each, whereas the minimum achievable target for e-three-wheelers and e-four-wheelers, i.e. commercial vehicles, is 40% each. In the second year, the target for e-cars for personal use rises to 20%, while it rises to 50% for e-buses. Similarly, in years three, four, and five, the target for e-two-wheelers and e-three-wheelers, i.e. passenger autos, is 100%, which means that beginning in 2024, registrations of fuel-based two-wheelers and autos will cease entirely, whereas for personal e-cars, the targets are 30%, 40%, and 50% for 2024, 2025, and 2026, respectively. Similarly, the goal for e-buses is to reach 100 percent by the end of the fifth year, at which point all registrations of fuel-powered buses will cease.

Source: Indian Express