Electric taxis yet to see light of day despite having nod

Mumbai: Despite having received permission four months back, the transport office is still working out the technicalities of electric taxis, thereby stalling the project. Officials have said that the engine requirements of these taxis are yet to be worked out. These electric cars have been plying privately.

According to officials, the issue is arising because the engine of an electric car has to be equivalent to at least 920 cc of a normal car, but the calculation has taken longer than expected.

The official said, “We are trying to figure how to get this translated in terms of running an electric car as a taxi, even though we have seen it plying as a private vehicle.” On the other hand, Mahindra is the only company that has been trying to get the RTO to pass its electric car, Reva as a commercial taxi. Reva’s prices were slashed to a mere Rs 92, 000 last year.

At the same time, transport offices have been trying to curb the emissions by private aggregator-based services like Ola and Uber by imposing a Rs 2.61 lakh permit fee under the City Taxi Scheme on those who have engines above 1400 cc. The permit fee earlier was Rs 25,000.

As of now Union minister Nitin Gadkari has given a go ahead to test the electric taxis in Nagpur on May 24. Officials deem this trial to be vital as it will reveal the ground reality of the electric taxi. An official said, “The first phase will see 200 electric taxis in Nagpur. But then again one can’t guarantee, we might as well have to make some adjustments.”

The electric taxi has been introduced with the idea that it will be extremely environment friendly with zero emissions, but the facility is also dependent on the availability of electricity.