Starting Wednesday, the Telangana government has exempted road tax and registration fee on purchase of various kinds of electric vehicles running on batteries, instead of fuel.
A government order to this effect was released by Sunil Sharma, principal secretary, Telangana transport, roads and buildings department on Tuesday.
According to the order, 100 per cent road tax and registration fee exemption would be given for the first two lakh electric two-wheelers, first 20,000 electric 3-wheelers, first 10,000 electric light goods carriers including 3-wheelers (goods carriers), first 5,000 private cars and 5,000 electric four-wheelers (commercial passenger vehicles like cabs and tourist taxis).
Similarly, 100 per cent exemption on road tax and registration fee would also be given for the first 500 electric buses, and also electric tractors. A retro-fitment incentive at 15 per cent of the cost, capped at ₹15,000, will also be given to the first 5,000 existing three-wheelers, which convert their diesel or petrol engines to battery-run engines.
The transport principal secretary said this tax exemption, being offered as part of the Telangana electric vehicles and energy storage policy announced on October 29 last year, would be given only on the vehicles purchased and registered within Telangana state.
State transport minister Puvvada Ajay Kumar said the state government had introduced the electric vehicles and energy storage policy to bring down automobile pollution. He appealed to the private entrepreneurs and green energy producers to make use of the incentives being given by the state government.
According to the policy, which will be in force till 2030, the government would also extend support to the private sector for establishing charging infrastructure for the electric vehicles. It calls for setting up charging or swapping stations at every 50 km on national and state highways within the state and encourages existing residential townships with 1,000 plus families to develop charging stations lots.
The policy also proposes that the Telangana State Electricity Regulatory Commission shall provide a special power tariff category for electric vehicle charging stations. The Telangana State Renewable Energy Development Corporation will act as a nodal agency to establish public charging stations directly or under the licensee/franchise/PPP model.
Various public places such as airports, railway/ metro stations, parking lots, bus depots, markets, petrol stations, malls and electric poles shall be examined for the same.
