Budget 2020: Videshi EV in India will become costlier
NewDelhi: Indian automotive industry had keenly awaited the Union Budget 2020, hoping the government would finally offer some relief. Well, they were in for a rude shock because the Union Budget 2020 offered no direct incentives for the industry. In fact, the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers had consistently urged the government to announce things like an Incentive based vehicle scrappage policy, NIL customs duty for lithium ion batteries, etc. While the agency is still combing thorugh the details, it believes none of its recommendations were taken into consideration.
But while we wait to hear the final verdict about how the Budget 2020 affects the automotive industry, let’s talk about electric vehicles because there’s plenty of clarity in this regard at the moment. See, among the Budget 2020 announcements was a hike in the customs levied on electric vehicles assembled in India. It has gone up from 10 per cent to 15 per cent and is applicable on all EV segments, i.e. passenger vehicles, two- and three-wheelers, buses, and trucks.However, cars such as the Tata Nexon EV, which is made in India, will not be affected by this change since it conforms to the government’s strategy for localisation. This will also hold true for other OEMs that make their electric vehicles in India, including the Mahindra KUV100 electric.