Electrifying our vehicle fleet is essential, and there are three major reasons why. First, there is the climate crisis. Transportation is a major oil consumer and accounts for about 15 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions. Electric vehicles (EVs), powered by electricity ideally from renewable sources, offer a cleaner alternative. Second, and especially urgent for Indian cities, is the need to reduce local air pollution. Swapping diesel and petrol vehicles for zero emission ones can significantly improve urban air quality. Third, electrification can help reduce our dependence on imported oil, saving valuable foreign exchange. These are all strong incentives to act. But while they offer justification, they do not constitute a complete roadmap. What we need now is a reset, a rethink of what we are doing and why, to ensure that electrification leads to real and lasting change.
Urban areas stand to gain the most from vehicle electrification: cleaner air, reduced oil consumption, and lower carbon emissions. But for this to work, we must be clear about the intent behind our policies and commit to delivering real outcomes at scale. India set ambitious EV goals in 2019 through NITI Aayog. By 2030, 70 percent of new commercial car sales, 30 percent of private cars, 40 percent of buses, and 80 percent of two and three wheelers were to be electric. Yet by mid-2025, only the three wheeler segment has seen notable progress, with nearly 60 percent of new registrations being electric, mostly low cost, unbranded, locally built models. Other segments remain stagnant, with EVs making up just 5 to 6 percent of new vehicle registrations. This scale is far too small to impact pollution, oil dependency, or climate goals meaningfully.
Vehicles are a major source of air toxins. But the issue is not just the type of vehicle, it is also the sheer volume. More vehicles mean more congestion, and more congestion worsens pollution. Delhi’s early 2000s switch to compressed natural gas (CNG) targeted high mileage public vehicles such as buses, taxis, and auto rickshaws. These contribute disproportionately to pollution due to their extensive use. Crucially, subsidies were used to modernize public transport, prioritizing the movement of people, not private vehicles. Today, India adds over 10,000 private cars to its roads daily. Despite new roads and flyovers, traffic snarls remain. Analysis by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) found that Delhi’s weekday traffic slows by 41 percent in the morning and 56 percent in the evening. This congestion not only adds to pollution but undermines public transport. Buses get caught in traffic, making them unreliable. As a result, ridership drops and more people turn to private vehicles. Even the Delhi Metro, despite its wide reach, is losing users due to poor last mile connectivity and costs.
Tracking the number of new electric buses is important, but so is ensuring that public transport captures a larger share of daily travel. Cities need to design systems that make commuting affordable, faster, and more convenient. This means fewer private vehicles on the road, less time spent in traffic, more time at home, and most importantly, healthier air.