Delhi cabinet to decide EV policy extension today

The Aam Aadmi Party government extended the Delhi Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy, 2020, which was to expire on Monday, till a new policy gets notified, officials said. The development came hours after the government halted the registration of all EVs in the Capital, citing the expiry of the policy.

Transport department officials said that the file for the extension of the EV policy, which was promulgated in August 2020, will likely be approved by the cabinet on Tuesday.

“Today, we complete 3 years of Delhi’s landmark EV policy that has propelled Delhi to becoming India’s EV capital. Since the formulation of the new EV policy is still under process, the subsidy benefits of the existing policy will continue till the new policy gets notified,” transport minister Kailash Gahlot posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Delhi’s EV policy 2.0 is currently being framed by the transport department but has been delayed. A government official said the transport department’s EV Cell — a special body constituted to implement provisions of the Delhi EV Policy — was working on the new policy, and blamed the setback on the lieutenant governor’s directions to terminate 400 “specialists” it had engaged across departments — the LG’s order led to the EV Cell shutting down after its CEO and five experts were sacked.

A Delhi government official, declining to be named, said, “In May, the EV Cell held a meeting with over 250 stakeholders, and international sectoral experts for the EV policy 2.0, with an aim to make recommendations to frame the next policy. When they were sacked, they were in the middle of compiling a huge volume of public feedback they received to shape the next policy.”

Another official said the transport department moved a proposal to extend the EV policy till December 30, which was approved by transport minister and is likely to be approved by the cabinet on Tuesday. “The Delhi government was aware that the EV policy was going to expire on August 7. It should have taken a decision on the extension of the policy in advance. The experts or specialists do not make the policy, the transport department is supposed to make the new EV policy,” the second official said, seeking anonymity.

HT reached out to the LG’s office, but officers there refused to comment on the Delhi government’s allegations.

Earlier in the day, the government halted the registration of all new EVs in the Capital after the expiry of the existing policy, which waived off the registration fee of all such vehicles. It also decided the amount of subsidy that the government would offer for such vehicles — the waiver of road tax, and purchase incentives of up to ₹30,000 for two-wheelers, e-rickshaws, and light commercial vehicles.

A motor licencing officer (MLO), who declined to be named, said, “In the morning, we asked all EV dealers to put the registration of EVs on hold till further orders. In the evening, we received a message from senior authorities that the registration of EVs may start from Tuesday. A communication will be made to the dealers when a final confirmation is made.”

Between August 2020 and June 2023, more than 129,000 EVs have been registered in the Capital, government data shows.