Deliveries or 3-wheeled cabs - India relies on electromobility. Rickshaws with batteries are now standard. More than half of all newly registered three-wheelers in 2022 were electric. India is beating the competition.
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00:00 It's hard to tell at first glance, but batteries are located beneath Vinod's signed seat.
00:06 His electric rickshaw is a real treasure for him.
00:11 I'm cleaning my electric rickshaw.
00:13 This is like Goddess Lakshmi for me, as it helps me earn a living.
00:17 It's my duty to take care of it daily.
00:21 More and more rickshaw drivers are choosing to do without dirty diesel, as India's population
00:27 is growing rapidly, especially in the cities.
00:30 Experts estimate that traffic alone could double by 2050, and with it, exhaust fumes.
00:35 There are still millions of diesel-powered two-wheelers on India's roads.
00:39 Still, the market for electric vehicles in India is booming.
00:43 While almost 730,000 electric two-wheelers were sold in the last fiscal year, the figure
00:48 was little more than 250,000 a year earlier.
00:53 Experts say there are several reasons for this.
00:55 I would attribute to three major reasons for this growth in India.
01:00 To begin with, it's India's climate pledges and the government policies that have sort
01:04 of led to this transition from ice to electric vehicles, broadly.
01:10 The second reason, if I were to attribute, is sort of economics.
01:13 And the third is the startups in India, which really started making these electric vehicles
01:18 interested in getting into manufacturing electric vehicles.
01:23 That really led to the start, I would say, in a certain sense.
01:26 And in many cases, the model is simple.
01:29 Instead of large battery blocks, it's usually these small ones that have a shorter lifespan,
01:34 but are affordable to drivers like Ashok Chauhan.
01:41 It costs less and has so many advantages compared to a normal rickshaw.
01:47 I can save up to a thousand rupees a day.
01:52 He's visiting a business where he hopes to buy a new electric rickshaw.
01:56 But he's still undecided.
01:58 The Indian government has invested heavily in electromobility and supports both customers
02:03 and dealers.
02:04 A vehicle like this used to cost almost 3,000 US dollars.
02:09 But thanks to the government subsidy, it now only costs the customer half as much, and
02:14 therefore far less than a gasoline-powered car.
02:19 It's a whole new driving experience for customers.
02:32 These electric rickshaws are really useful and available everywhere.
02:35 They don't use gasoline, so we don't have any exhaust fumes.
02:39 I often use them to take my children to school or to go to the vegetable market and visit
02:45 my brother.
02:47 What's more, the service is cheap.
02:51 It's also easier to get in and out of the electric rickshaw.
02:54 Getting in is very comfortable.
02:57 Ashok Chauhan gets to take a test drive today.
03:01 I've been driving an electric vehicle for three years.
03:04 I only commute with my electric rickshaw.
03:07 It doesn't pollute the environment.
03:08 It doesn't emit as much exhaust fumes as gasoline and diesel vehicles.
03:15 He now wants to buy a new electric rickshaw.
03:18 This business now sells 200 vehicles a month, and the boss wants to hire new workers.
03:23 We've been in business for 10 years and have good annual growth.
03:27 But in the last two years post-COVID, this industry has seen phenomenal growth.
03:32 People's mindset is changing in favor of electric mobility, and I see huge success in the future
03:37 as well.
03:41 Hundreds of companies in India are doing the same.
03:44 As a result, more and more people are becoming self-employed, like Vinod Sain, as an electric
03:49 rickshaw cab driver.
03:51 And the environment becomes less polluted.