Latest news with #NationalHighwaysforElectricVehicles
Indian Express
06-05-2025
- Automotive
- Indian Express
Mains answer practice — GS 3 : Questions on electric highways and importance of Free Trade Agreements (Week 101)
UPSC Essentials brings to you its initiative for the practice of Mains answer writing. It covers essential topics of static and dynamic parts of the UPSC Civil Services syllabus covered under various GS papers. This answer-writing practice is designed to help you as a value addition to your UPSC CSE Mains. Attempt today's answer writing on questions related to topics of GS-3 to check your progress. Discuss the significance of India's plan to develop electric highways under the National Highways for Electric Vehicles (NHEV) initiative. Introduction — The introduction of the answer is essential and should be restricted to 3-5 lines. Remember, a one-liner is not a standard introduction. — It may consist of basic information by giving some definitions from the trusted source and authentic facts. Body — It is the central part of the answer and one should understand the demand of the question to provide rich content. — The answer must be preferably written as a mix of points and short paragraphs rather than using long paragraphs or just points. — Using facts from authentic government sources makes your answer more comprehensive. Analysis is important based on the demand of the question, but do not over analyse. N ote: This is not a model answer. It only provides you with thought process which you may incorporate into the answers. Introduction: — National Highways for Electric Vehicles (NHEV) is a pilot program undertaken by the Government of India, initially supported by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, to convert highways into E-Highways. — NHEV is created and funded using a Hybrid PPP model known as Annuity Hybrid E-Mobility (AHEM), and it is currently in the process of expanding to 5500 km of e-highways on the Bharatmala and Sagarmala routes from Delhi to Kanyakumari via the Mumbai and Kolkata corridors. — In her February Budget speech, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman advised states to develop a three-year pipeline of PPP infrastructure projects and seek support from the India Infrastructure Project Development Fund (IIPDF). — The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) would provide funding for the projects, as well as land for charging stations. — According to technical experiments undertaken by NHEV, a pilot program under the government's Ease of Doing Business strategy, e-highways will include public charging stations every 50 kilometres. These will aim to achieve at least 30% charging point usage and a three-year breakeven period. What is India's approach to EV infrastructure? — India's approach to developing EV infrastructure has been misguided from the start, with a greater emphasis on installing charging stations in cities—where vehicle movement is less predictable—rather than on highways, where fleet-operated electric buses, cars, and trucks travel in more consistent patterns. — EVs would have been running on roads, instilling confidence in cities. — It has also created charging station designs and predicted future earnings based on specified characteristics, with the goal of bringing EV charging stations up to the same level of investment clarity as petrol pumps. Conclusion: — To fund India's e-highways, NHEV has created a model called Annuity Hybrid E-Mobility (AHEM), which is based on the Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM) used for PPP road projects and guarantees a three-year breakeven period. — Under this arrangement, NHEV constructs charging stations with government assistance, and enterprises that supply chargers and EVs, such as fleet operators, are paid a predetermined sum in the first year to cover capital expenditures. After that, they receive variable fees according to how large their fleets grow and how frequently the chargers are utilised. Points to Ponder Read more about EV infrastructure. How can this project contribute to India's goals of reducing logistics costs, oil imports, and carbon emissions? Related Previous Year Questions Why is Public Private Partnership (PPP) required in infrastructural projects? Examine the role of PPP model in the redevelopment of Railway Stations in India. (2022) 'Investment in infrastructure is essential for more rapid and inclusive economic growth.' Discuss in the light of India's experience. (2020) N ote: This is not a model answer. It only provides you with thought process which you may incorporate into the answers. Introduction: — Free trade agreements (FTAs) with the United States and the European Union, as well as the formation of a favourable environment for foreign joint ventures (JVs), would help integrate India's developing auto component industry into global value chains. — According to a new NITI Aayog report, a combination of fiscal and non-fiscal incentives was proposed. The NITI Aayog anticipates India's auto component exports to quadruple to $60 billion by 2030, with the country's share in global value chains increasing from 3 to 8%. Body: You may incorporate some of the following points in your answer: — The majority of M&As (mergers and acquisitions), whether in automotive or other industries, take place in the United States, the European Union, and a few other nations. That is why free trade agreements with the United States and Europe are so crucial. — India is currently pursuing a bilateral trade agreement with Washington and an FTA with Brussels. The paper stated that 'strategically negotiated' FTAs can promote foreign investment, knowledge transfer, and innovation. — NITI Aayog Member Arvind Virmani emphasised the importance of FTAs in enhancing export competitiveness, saying such agreements might help raise investment flows into India and promote the formation of international joint ventures. — To help international joint ventures prosper in India, it advocated for a business-friendly environment bolstered by tax exemptions, subsidies, and investment promotion programs. — By collaborating with international firms like Germany, Japan, and the United States, Indian manufacturers can obtain access to cutting-edge technology, experience, and resources, bridging the gap in specialised manufacturing capabilities. — The research advocated a new approach for transforming brownfield auto clusters into global manufacturing hubs. There is also a requirement to conduct a complete audit of current auto clusters to assess utilisation, implementation issues, and facility conditions. Conclusion: — According to the report, India's auto component business has a 10% cost disadvantage over China, with an extra 20% gap in manufacturing equipment. — China has a well-integrated supply chain that extends from raw minerals to high-value-added products, but India lacks such depth in its supplier ecosystem. — Despite being the world's fourth-largest vehicle producer behind China, the United States, and Japan, India accounts for only 3% (or approximately $20 billion) of worldwide auto component commerce. Points to Ponder Read more about FTA Read about India-US trade and India-EU trade Describe the benefits of deriving electric energy from sunlight in contrast to the conventional energy generation. What are the initiatives offered by our government for this purpose? (2020)
Indian Express
29-04-2025
- Automotive
- Indian Express
How India can build 5,500 km of e-highways by 2027: National Highways for EV's Abhijeet Sinha explains
Twenty-three national highways totalling 5,500 km could be upgraded to e-highways for electric vehicles by 2027, provided states submit eligible public-private partnership (PPP) proposals to the Centre, Abhijeet Sinha, programme director at National Highways for Electric Vehicles (NHEV), told The Indian Express. In her Budget speech this February, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had urged states to identify a three-year pipeline of infrastructure projects in PPP mode and seek support from the India Infrastructure Project Development Fund (IIPDF). Making a case for the development of e-highways under this model, Sinha said: 'The projects will be funded, land will be provided through the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for charging stations. What do states have to give? Just electricity and permissions, like for registering electric fleet operators. It's a win-win situation for them. The only thing they have to do is respond to this national clarion call.' Based on technical trials conducted by NHEV, a pilot programme under the government's Ease of Doing Business initiative, e-highways will feature public charging stations every 50 km. These will target at least 30 per cent utilisation of charging points, and achieve a breakeven period of three years. 'We came in because it was important to have an agency that does prototyping, testing, proof of concept, and pilot runs for these technologies so that they become commercially viable. If we hadn't done this, there would be more of what happened over the last 10 years of governments purchasing public chargers, which have utilisation of 3-5 per cent and the breakeven period is 45 years,' said Sinha, who is also president of the Charge Point Operators Society (CPOS). India's approach to EV infrastructure According to him, India's approach to developing EV infrastructure has been misdirected from the start, with greater emphasis placed on setting up charging stations within cities—where vehicle movement is less predictable—rather than on highways, where fleet-operated electric buses, cars, and trucks follow more consistent travel patterns. 'If we had worked in that direction, EVs would have been running on highways and that would have generated confidence within cities. People would've said EVs are running between Delhi and Jaipur, but why can't they go from home to office in an EV,' he said. NHEV has conducted extensive trial runs with multiple fleet operators across three routes—Delhi to Agra, Delhi to Jaipur, and Chennai to Tiruchirappalli—and gathered detailed data to give potential investors greater confidence in financing charging infrastructure. A template for building EV charging stations It has also developed charging station designs and projected potential earnings based on specific parameters, aiming to bring EV charging stations on par with petrol pumps in terms of investment clarity. 'For petrol pumps, standardised designs are readily available from multiple architects. But if you want to build a charging station tomorrow and start construction within a month, an architect might take six months just to finalise a design and get approvals from various ministries. Also, how much money do charging stations actually make? If people don't know that, they won't invest,' Sinha said. NHEV has also identified key metrics that define an e-highway, which include at least 30 per cent utilisation of charging infrastructure. 'How did we increase utilisation? We focused on two basics—an origin city and a destination city. You need two cities between which people actually commute, because that's what the calculation depends on. We analysed real-time running data, looked at how many buses and cars were available on apps—say, buses from Delhi to Jaipur—and how many travellers were booking. Then, we worked out how many buses and cars would be needed to keep utilisation at the desired levels,' he said. 'If your charger isn't hitting 30 per cent utilisation, don't commission it. You'll run at a loss. If someone had thought about this earlier, you wouldn't have been losing money for the last 10 years,' Sinha added. AHEM model for electric highways in India To finance India's e-highways, NHEV has developed a model called Annuity Hybrid E-Mobility (AHEM), based on the Hybrid Annuity Model (HAM) used for PPP road projects, to ensure a breakeven period of 3 years. Under this model, NHEV builds the charging stations with government support, and companies that supply chargers and EVs, like fleet operators, are paid a fixed amount in the first year to cover capital costs. After that, they earn variable payments depending on how much their fleets grow and how often the chargers are used. After the first year, charging stations are then offered to PSUs on priority, followed by the private sector, including family offices and high-net-worth individuals (HNIs), while NHEV continues to operate them. The model spreads financial risk between PSUs, insurers, and banks, giving suppliers the confidence and liquidity to invest. The development of e-highways with functional charging stations every 50 km will be pivotal in addressing a key concern with EVs—range anxiety. 'At a petrol pump, you are rarely refused petrol. In the current situation, there are such chargers for which there will be no electricity. As a fuel dispensing infrastructure, whatever the fuel may be, you can't upset a user with just 10 per cent charge left on a highway. It could be a lady driver, the time might be night. You can't create a volatile situation of this kind,' Sinha said.
