This archive report was first published on 10 July 2019.
India is set to become the world's most populous nation within a decade, and the government has unveiled new tax incentives to boost the adoption of electric vehicles. However, manufacturers say there is no clear roadmap to get more EVs on the roads.
Hyundai Motors has unveiled the Kona Electric SUV, which can travel 452 kilometres on one charge. The car will cost $36,000, more than three times the price of the cheapest combustion-engine SUV and more than eight times dearer than a regular saloon car.
According to Hyundai Motors Managing Director SS Kim, the improved range of the Kona Electric SUV will address one of the major concerns among customers in India, where there is a shortage of charging stations.
India is home to 22 of the world's 30 most polluted cities, with industrial emissions, car fumes and smoke from burning crops creating a toxic cocktail. Poisonous air killed 1.24 million Indians in 2017, according to a study published last year by Lancet Planetary Health.
India currently generates about two-thirds of its electricity with coal and gas, making it the world's third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases.
