All you wanted to know about public EV charging in India
Why Public EV Charging is Important in India
While the benefits of electric vehicles are known to many, their wide-scale adoption depends on the availability of public EV charging stations. So let's find out the current penetration level of these charging stations in India.
It has been known for quite some time that electric vehicles (EVs)are the future of transportation. While 12 lakh electric vehicles are currently plying on Indian roads, the number is expected to reach 3 crores by the end of 2024.
(Source: The Hindu)
However, India needs suitable infrastructure to support the EV revolution. Presently, EV owners can easily charge their vehicles at home. But what if you're travelling out of the city, or your EV's charge goes down where no charging facility is available? This is why we need a wide network of EV charging stations across the country.
Public EV Charging in India
The Government of India has taken many initiatives to develop EV charging infrastructure for the public across the country.
Initial focus on 9 cities
The government will first focus on developing the EV charging infrastructure in 9 megacities, each with a population of over 4 million. These cities are Delhi, Surat, Ahmedabad, Pune, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Kolkata. As of February 2022, these 9 cities have 940 of India's 1,640 public EV charging stations.
The government will expand the coverage to other cities as well once the EV infrastructure is saturated in these nine cities.
(Source: Economics Times)
Oil marketing companies to take lead
The oil marketing companies already have a vast network of petrol/diesel distribution centres across different cities. These companies plan to set up 22,000 EV charging stations nationwide to aid EV penetration. Following is the company-wise breakup of the installation commitment of the EV charging points.
(Source: Economics Times)
Company Name | Number of charging stations to be installed |
IOCL (Indian Oil) | 10,000 |
BPCL (Bharat Petroleum) | 7,000 |
HPCL (Hindustan Petroleum) | 5,000 |
Total | 22,000 |
Public & private organisations aren’t far behind
The Ministry of Heavy Industries will install 2877 charging stations in 68 cities under Phase II of the FAME India scheme. It further plans to install 1,576 public charging stations near 25 expressways and highways under this phase. These charging points will be located on both sides of the road within every 25 km of range.
(Source: Pib.gov)
BHEL has set up a network of Solar-based Electric Vehicle Charging Stations throughout the Delhi-Chandigarh Highway, making it India’s first EV-friendly highway.
(Source: Business Standard)
Many private sector companies, including EV manufacturers, are also coming forward to set up EV charging points.
How to know EV charging stations' location?
• EV manufacturer’s charging services
Most EV manufacturers provide charging facilities across India for their customers. You can contact your EV manufacturer’s customer care number to know these places where they have charging units.
• Google maps
You can use Google Maps to search for nearby EV charging stations, just like you search for different places. Many EVs support integrating Google Maps with the vehicle’s system to help find EV charging stations.
• Dedicated app
Many apps in the Play store and the App store such as TATA power EZ Charge, EV plugs, Statiq have a geo-tagged database of EV charging stations. Install any of these apps to get directions to the nearest charging point.
Now that you know the public EV charging systems in India, let’s have a quick look at the insurance aspect before you finalize your deal for the EV vehicle.
Is car insurance mandatory for EVs?
In India, third-party liability car insurance coverage is mandatory. This applies to EVs too. However, it is recommended to purchase comprehensive car insurance to get complete protection and safeguard yourself and your car against all kinds of risks like third-party liabilities, theft, natural calamity, etc.
You can now purchase car insurance online by visiting our Kotak General Car insurance page. You can also get a quote before finalizing the insurance plan.
While the government's 360-degree approach to developing EV charging infrastructure is laudable, a lot more needs to be done. Providing easy access to public EV charging points across the nation is going to be a key factor in India's drive toward mass adoption of EVs.
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