Govt Likely To Exempt EVs From 15-Year ‘End Of Life’ Norm: Report

In an effort to boost electric vehicle adoption, the government is likely to exempt them from the 15-year ‘end of life’ (EoL) regulation.

A ToI report said that the power ministry will also extend Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) norms to urban freight vehicles, trucks and buses.

These measures were discussed in a meeting chaired by NITI Aayog member Rajiv Gauba amid a slowdown in EV penetration in India. 

In 2024, electric vehicle (EV) adoption in India reached 7.8%, which is below the government’s target of 30% by 2030.

“NITI Aayog CEO BVR Subrahmanyam suggested that if the 15-year EOL regulation is not applied to EVs, it may spur sales,” the report said, citing sources. 

It further said that there was a consensus to move from incentives to mandates and disincentives for quick EV adoption and for strategies to have saturation in five cities for buses, para-transit and urban freight vehicles.

In addition, the finance ministry also held talks with banks to address their reluctance to finance EVs and the issue of higher interest rates, the report said. 

At a meeting chaired by financial services secretary M Nagaraju, banks asked the government to standardise batteries, bring down vehicle costs and announce some incentive for purchase of new batteries. 

In July, total EV sales stood at 1,85,528 as against 1,89,966 in June. In the first seven months of the calendar year 2026, a total of 12,87,327 EVs were registered. 

It must be noted that total EV two wheeler (E2W) registrations also declined nearly 9% on an MoM basis in July as total EV sales in the country remained flat in the month under review. 

The recent slowdown in EV adoption is also driven by supply‑chain risks as EV companies are facing a potential production halt due to China’s rare‑earth magnet export curbs, underscoring global dependencies in EV manufacturing. 

A few weeks ago, reports surfaced that Bajaj Auto, TVS and Ather are set to cut production due to a prolonged disruption in the supply of heavy rare earth (HRE). 

Besides, it was reported last month that EV financing and leasing startup Ohm Mobility is winding down its operations. The five-year-old startup failed to scale the business despite numerous pivots in its journey, its cofounder and CEO Nikhil Nair said.

Similarly, Inc42 reported in June that three-wheeler EV manufacturer Altigreen was close to winding down its operations due to a funding crunch as it saw an underwhelming response from the market. Apart from that, Log9 and BluSmart also saw tumultuous downfall in recent months. 

Given the scenario, global EV manufacturers still see India as a potential EV market and are moving production to India amid geopolitical upheaval. In the most recent development, Vietnamese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer VinFast is in talks with multiple component makers to boost local sourcing from India.

Notably, Elon Musk’s Tesla is also eyeing to launch its first supercharging station in India this week, starting with Mumbai.