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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

Ripples before BMC elections

Congress solo threat rattles MVA Mumbai : The unilateral decision of the state Congress to contest the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections independently has apparently rattled the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) main allies and smaller parties, with hectic backstage politicking underway.   Barely a week after AICC General Secretary Ramesh Chennithala’s terse announcement, supported vociferously by Mumbai unit chief Varsha Gaikwad, there are indications of the other parties considering...

Ripples before BMC elections

Congress solo threat rattles MVA Mumbai : The unilateral decision of the state Congress to contest the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections independently has apparently rattled the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) main allies and smaller parties, with hectic backstage politicking underway.   Barely a week after AICC General Secretary Ramesh Chennithala’s terse announcement, supported vociferously by Mumbai unit chief Varsha Gaikwad, there are indications of the other parties considering counter-moves – to convince the Congress on a re-think.   The grand old party’s virtual threat not only unnerved the Nationalist Congress Party (SP), Shiv Sena (UBT) and their allies, but also the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), at which eyebrows are being raised for the purported discord in the MVA.   The Congress this week reached out to NCP (SP) President Sharad Pawar to join hands, and the latter is reportedly keen for a broader Opposition alliance that includes the MNS.   Congress insiders claim that internal surveys have not exactly painted a rosy picture for the MVA’s prospects in the BMC polls for 227 Wards, unnerving most parties even before the poll schedules are declared by the Maharashtra State Election Commission (SEC).   A worse scenario could be, the sentiments may reflect across the other important municipal corporations that will go to the hustings along with BMC, adding to the gloom in the opposition camps, they caution.   Political sources deny that any so-called ‘conditional offer’ has been made to the SS (UBT) to dump MNS - if it wants the Congress ‘hand’ behind it – as reported in some sections.   Rubbishing such theories, MNS Spokesperson Sandeep Deshpande guardedly said that “we are an independent party and all our decisions are taken by the party President Raj Thackeray”.   Reiterating that the MNS is not a constituent of the MNS, Desphande also said the party is not concerned about which leader met whom or they said what about MNS, as any final call on a poll deal would be taken only after deliberations between Raj and Uddhav Thackeray.   As per current indications, the Congress will actively explore tie-ups with several Dalit, peasants, workers and minority parties/groups - though the Samajwadi Party (SP) has said it may chart a solo path – to avoid vote-split as well as safeguard the Congress’s 140-year-old ideology.   “We are not affected by claims made by anyone from any party. We shall abide by the decisions of the party high command, which was made clear last week. The party will follow it to the hilt,” a Mumbai Congress leader told  ‘ The Perfect Voice’ .   Congress leaders continue to be apprehensive over the MNS’ old violent campaigns against north Indians and minorities which may haunt it in the civic polls, and possibly mar the chances of the opposition, already reeling under a crisis of survival after back-to-back political reverses in three state assembly polls. Meanwhile, the MVA allies continued to slam the ruling MahaYuti on various counts. Chiefly, the recent flying visits by the two Deputy CMs, Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, the failing law-and-order against the recent rape-cum-murder of a minor girl in Malegaon, and the alleged suicide of a college student after he was assaulted for speaking in Hindi.

India now tops world in e3w, second in e2W sales

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Mumbai: In a commendable feat, India has now tops the world in electric 3-wheeler sales accounting for 57 pc of all global sales, and ranks second in electric 2-wheeler sales with a 6 pc world share in 2024, a new report on Zero Emission Vehicles (ZEV) transition released as the COP-3) in Brazil.

 

The COP-30 Progress Update, has attributed these achievements to the strong policies of the Indian government, especially PM E-Drive and FAME, that helped slash the price gaps between electric and petrol vehicles, pushing large-scale adoption across last-mile transport and encouraging major private investments.

 

India’s strategy to combat pollution levels has been to target the vehicles most common on its roads – two and three wheelers, which account for nearly 80 pc of the total automobiles sales in the country.

 

This targeted approach has led to a cycle where more sales encourage more investment, which further accelerates the market, as per the report shared by International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) India.

 

The PM E-Drive Scheme further boosts adoption by supporting the sale of 2.5 million e2w’s and 320,000 e3w’s, backed by a USD-315 million outlay for vehicles and charging infrastructure.

 

It has pushed private and public sector to act, like a major delivery company committing to convert its entire fleet into EVs in five years, some state and local governments assuring to partially convert their fleets of official or public transport vehicles to electric.

 

Even globally, EV adoption is increasing despite policy shifts in some advanced economies. EVs notched18 pc of all global light-duty vehicles in 2024, up from 14 pc in 2023, and likely to go up further this year.

 

With France, Spain, and Croatia showering more consumer incentives, UK and Canada refining ZEV mandates, the public charging points world over have doubled from 2.50 million (2022) to over 5 million now.

 

Racing to keep up, India has recorded a 23 pc year-on-year rise in light-duty EV sales from 2023 to 2024 and reaching a 2.9 pc EV share in early 2025.

 

The COP-30 report has lauded India’s FAME and PM E-Drive programs - and the EU’s AFIR regulation - as major forces speeding up the global move toward zero-emission mobility.

 

ICCT’s India Managing Director Amit Bhatt emphasized that electrifying India’s dominant vehicle segments is already delivering results. He termed as timely and essential next step the Centre’s fresh push to electrify medium and heavy-duty trucks – which comprise only 3 pc of the total vehicle stock but cough out 44 pc  of transport emissions.


Clean & green leaders: India’s e3w & e2W

The Faster Adoption & Manufacturing of Hybrid & Electric Vehicles (FAME) and PM E-Drive programs helped lower the upfront costs of electric 2 wheelers and electric 3 wheelers, making them price-competitive with ICE equivalents.

 

The transition has been powered by a strong collaboration between government and the private sector, particularly in last-mile delivery, with companies adopting EVs to save costs and working with rental partners to build out the ecosystem.

 

The quick expansion of EV charging networks in the world is driven by encouraging policies - with Europe’s reliance on deployment targets and India’s use of targeted incentives demonstrating two effective and scalable models, as per the COP-30 coming a day before the global meet ends on Friday.

 


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