Kolkata, March 11 -- Britain has evinced interest to invest in Bengal in the electric mobility sector. A team of industrialists from Britain with the initiative of the British Deputy High Commission in Kolkata held a meeting with senior officials of the state Transport department led by minister in-charge Snehasis Chakraborty on Monday.
The minister has sought a written document from the industrialists' team about their detailed plan when it comes to boosting the electric vehicle infrastructure in the state.
The team have their expertise in environment-friendly transportation which may include manufacture of e-vehicles, setting up of charging stations, manufacture of batteries for e-vehicles.
"They have been asked to present along with their plan the financial and social impact that their project will have. Since they will be working in coordination with the government, it will be important to ascertain the impact it will have on common people," Chakraborty said. According to official records, 5,925 EVs were registered across the city's four Regional Transport Offices (RTOs) in 2024, slightly surpassing the 5,897 diesel vehicle registrations. This shift reflects a growing preference for cleaner mobility solutions over diesel, which has long been criticised for its harmful emissions and environmental impact. The state presently allows a one-time exemption of registration fees, road tax and additional taxes for two and four-wheeled electric vehicles which will be effective from March 31, 2025. In 2022, the state for the first time had introduced a one-time exemption of registration fees, tax and additional tax for EVs and all categories of CNG-operated vehicles with effect from April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2024.
"Adoption of vehicles with cleaner fuel will pave the way for a better environment as petrol and diesel-powered vehicles contribute to 30 per cent of the city's ambient air pollution," a senior Nabanna official said.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.