DIMAPUR — Only
0.02% of the total vehicles registered in Nagaland over the last five years
(2019-2024) are electric vehicles (EVs).
According to the Vahan portal of the Ministry of Road
Transport and Highways, a total of 119,281 vehicles were sold in Nagaland over
the last five years (2019-2024), of which only 27 were EVs.
This was stated by the Minister of State for Heavy
Industries and Steel, Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma, in a written reply in the
Rajya Sabha on December 13.
According to the Northeast state-wise registration of
electric vehicles over the last five years (2019-2024), Assam led with a total
of 150,617 EV registrations, followed by Tripura with 20,113 EV registrations,
Manipur with 1,273 EV registrations, Meghalaya with 572 EV registrations,
Mizoram with 344 EV registrations, and Arunachal Pradesh with 42 EV
registrations.
The Ministry of Heavy Industries has formulated various
schemes to promote the development of an indigenous, end-to-end EV ecosystem in
India and to strengthen the country's manufacturing capabilities and exports.
According to information provided by the Ministry of Mines,
they have established Khanij Bidesh India Limited (KABIL), a joint venture
company with equity contributions from National Aluminium Company (NALCO),
Hindustan Copper Limited (HCL), and Mineral Exploration and Consultancy Limited
(MECL).
KABIL has signed an Exploration and Development Agreement
with CAMYEN, a state-owned enterprise of Catamarca province in Argentina, for
the exploration and mining of five lithium blocks in Argentina.
KABIL is also in continuous discussions with the Critical
Minerals Office in Australia, with the primary objective of acquiring critical
and strategic mineral assets.
