The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways has denied reports of the government asking electric two-wheeler manufacturers not to launch new vehicles till the recent spate of incidents of fire in electric scooters are investigated. According to several media reports, this was communicated to manufacturers at a meeting called by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways on Monday to discuss the rising number of incidents of fire in electric two-wheelers. All electric vehicle manufacturers have been asked to voluntarily recall entire batch of vehicles if one from that batch was involved in a fire incident. Now, the government has clarified on social media that the ministry has not given any such instruction.
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There have been several incidents of fires in electric scooters over the past one month. A batch of e-scooters from Jitendra EV caught fire while waiting to be transported near its factory in Maharashtra.
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According to recent reports, electric vehicle manufacturers have been verbally told to not launch new vehicles "until clarity about the cause of fires and steps required to stop them have been firmed up." These media reports quoted a government official privy to the development, which had apparently taken place at a meeting of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways to discuss the rising cases of fire in electric two-wheelers.
According to the government official quoted in the report, "Manufacturers who did not have incidents of electric two-wheelers catching fire have also been cautioned to take corrective actions on their sold vehicles. The roads ministry has asked EV makers to educate consumers about charging safety and how to prevent fire incidents."
Also Read: Okinawa Dealership In Tamil Nadu Catches Fire
Last week, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari had asked electric vehicle makers to voluntarily recall faulty electric two-wheelers after a series of fire accidents in which a few people also lost their lives. After the minister's statement, electric vehicle manufacturers like Ola Electric, Okinawa and Pure EV, all brands whose electric scooters have been involved in fire incidents, recalled nearly 7,000 electric two-wheelers they had sold.
Also Read: 20 Electric Scooters From Jitendra EV Catch Fire
A Pure EV electric scooter caught fire on a public road near Chennai in March 2022
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The vehicle recall instructions were reiterated during an interaction between EV makers and senior roads ministry officials on Monday. EV manufacturers were also reminded about provisions of the Indian Motor Vehicle Act that allows the central government to order forceful recalls and levy penalties on errant manufacturers.
Also Read: Experts Comment On Reasons For EV Fires & The Way Forward
While the government may not have issued any instructions to halt launches of electric two-wheelers, there's no denying the fact that there's increasing focus is on quality and safety, especially on systems and processes and on quality of battery used in new electric two-wheelers.
Sohinder Gill, CEO - Hero Electric, says there must be checks, balances and solutions to ensure safety of electric vehicles.
Also Read: Pure EV Recalls Electric Scooters After Fire Incident
"As an industry, at this critical juncture, we must work together with the policymakers to build checks, balances and solutions to ensure utmost safety of the EVs. OEMs must go back to the design boards and revisit the safety aspect and also strengthen stringent quality assurance right from sourcing to production and deployment. Awareness towards healthy battery usage is another critical aspect and brands must introduce/bring in educational campaigns for customers to ensure their safety," said Sohinder Gill, CEO, Hero Electric.
While India is pushing ahead with adoption of EVs, the recent unfortunate incidents of fire in electric two-wheelers is likely to hit consumer sentiment, at least in the short term. In the longer term, with rising fuel prices, the EV segment is likely to see more action, both in terms of new products, better engineering and innovative products.
