[AJ-got-BHP]

Excellent off beat visit SS-Traveller and very well covered by yourself indeed

This thread is a reflection of the 'National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) 2020' which was conceptualized in the year 2013 to address the issues of National energy security, vehicular pollution and growth of domestic manufacturing capabilities in India.

Some very good insights and inferences shared by you. However, would like to ask you a couple of questions :

1. Were the manufacturers specific to North India only (apart from the counterparts from China) or were there manufacturers from all over India ?
2. Recently E-Rickshaws have been banned from a number of suburb areas (in Bengal) due to the influence of various Unions prevailing in these belts. I believe there was a similar situation in Delhi as well sometime ago. How do the manufacturers see there future in these situations and circumstances ?

[hrsraghav]

Good covering of the event.
Also good report from team-bhp specially just after the
Maruti, M&M, Tata jointly working for Hybrid and
Electric Vehicle landscape one.
Sad that I missed this event, as was exploring the options of what is the future of EV Vehicle Industry in India.
Also a query, wasn't there any of passenger car on display, and is anyone aware of any such event for passenger car segment.

Regards
Harish

[FuelInjector]

Fantastic write up with pictures. In my opinion, Most of it is relevant for the sub commercial passenger mover (like Auto and cycle rickshaws) and some targeted towards self-help schemes for small scale vendors. Still some breakthrough is needed in battery technologies (charge retention, thermal properties & quick recharging options) for actual commercial vehicle segments for mass transports.

Originally Posted by hybridpetrol

By the way, I am unable to comprehend this one objective of Govt. for this expo (taken from the quoted article in OP):
Can anyone elaborate its relevance to the EVs?

Not sure, but my take is to eliminate usage of hand pulled rickshaws in certain cities and maybe also eliminate the usage of animal pulled wheelers.
Who knows, with the news of a reactor in Gujarat - if India is able to indeed generate nuclear power based electricity all this could be reality soon.

[srishiva]

Isn't the range of e-rickshaws unsuitable for the kind of running they do? The battery tech should develop by leaps and bounds for them to be used for public transport vehicles.
They need to have something different for that sector.

[hrsraghav]

Originally Posted by mrbaddy

Fantastic Report SS. Thanks for sharing.

This thread is again tinkling the entrepreneurial parts of my mind which I have kept suppressed for the last few years.

same here.
Its a nice segment to look forward, the current scenario of Pollution awareness and lack of options make it a open field for both research and commercials. Also as mentioned in other thread, that M&M, Maruti and Tata are jointly working for making parts of Hybrid vehicles, I think the way Tata went mad to build Nano, they can surely bring some new insights and innovations in this segment if they prioritise EVs as there next targeted segment.
What I understand from my limited knowledge is its the Battery segment which need the biggest innovations. A battery which can hold that much of power, in smallest and lightest form, and take minimum time to charge back.
I think all these small transport Vehicles were using lead acid battery, and the Li-Ion battery of the truly hybrid cars are way too expensive as of now to commercialise to masses.



Regards
Harish

[mrbaddy]

Originally Posted by hybridpetrol

By the way, I am unable to comprehend this one objective of Govt. for this expo (taken from the quoted article in OP):

Can anyone elaborate its relevance to the EVs?

They are referring to the following manual cycling rickshaws still prevalent in some Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities and rural areas.

[outofthebox]

Thank you SS-Traveller sir for this excellent report. I did notice the banners while passing by but was out of town on those dates so couldn't visit the expo.

IMHO, those 3 wheeled EV rickshaws are fine on a golf course or within the confines of a large warehouse but they will be an absolute road safety nightmare if unleashed on Delhi's roads & expressways.

It's bad enough that 1000's of 3 wheeled monstrosities aka auto rickshaws with no road safety training or manners keep playing havoc with peoples' lives everyday on city roads and high speed expressways.

With a really horrible & shameful road fatalities record nationwide, I sincerely hope that the decision makers value the lives of citizens a little bit more in this century and really think through before unleashing these on the streets willy nilly.

If they must, they should learn from Bombay and at least restrict such vehicles to lower speed internal roads of large metros.

[Aditya2703]

The tough looking load carrier by Sona resembles John Deere Gator (or is it indeed one under the skin??).
The green and gold color scheme is a hint.

[farhadtarapore]

Originally Posted by outofthebox

IMHO, those 3 wheeled EV rickshaws are fine on a golf course or within the confines of a large warehouse but they will be an absolute road safety nightmare if unleashed on Delhi's roads & expressways.

It's bad enough that 1000's of 3 wheeled monstrosities aka auto rickshaws with no road safety training or manners keep playing havoc with peoples' lives everyday on city roads and high speed expressways.

With a really horrible & shameful road fatalities record nationwide, I sincerely hope that the decision makers value the lives of citizens a little bit more in this century and really think through before unleashing these on the streets willy nilly.

If they must, they should learn from Bombay and at least restrict such vehicles to lower speed internal roads of large metros.

Absolutely my thoughts too! As it is there are way too many autos on Mumbai's roads too and restricting them to 20 or 25kmph is going to do no good to anyone but increase the traffic snarls as they chug along blocking everyone behind them. No road sense or civic sense these auto drivers also only making things worse on our roads.

We need to have private vehicles made electric, the Mahindra E20 is a step in the right direction, but is way too small and cramped. I particularly liked the e-storm. Hope it sees the light of day soon.

[Nissan1180]

The expo is a good introduction to the silent revolution being orchestrated by e-rickshaws. Yes, in their present form, they are unsafe, unreliable and an unenviable means of improving public transport. I had started an unrelated thread explaining the basics of how these basic 3 wheelers work.
However, I still maintain the opinion that these vehicles, in time, will make public transport cheaper and more reliable. Right now the manufacturers are a motley group of industrialists with an interest in profiting from the rapid growth in suburban markets. In time the market will mature enough to merit the introduction of conventional models with hybrid hearts. In India, as long as the answer to kitna deti hain is fine, I doubt if the consumers will care about the brand. Tata has been testing hybrids with the university of warwick for quite some time now and I hope they get the first movers advantage. It is surprising that no established manufacturer invested in a stall showcasing the benefits of hybrids and electric vehicles for consumers.