New Delhi, June 8 (IANS): The share of electric cars (EVs) in the total car sales in the country has increased to over 4 per cent from 2.6 per cent last year. This information was obtained from the data released by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA). In May this year, the share of electric passenger vehicles in total sales increased by 0.5 percentage points compared to 3.5 percent in April, indicating that EVs are fast becoming popular among customers. According to retail data, 12,304 electric cars were sold in May, compared to just 8,029 units in May 2024. Sales of electric cars in April this year stood at 12,233 units.
Saharsh Damani, CEO, FADA, said, "This is an important milestone towards electrification of our industry. This increase has been due to improvements in battery technology, better range and reduction in the cost of electric models than before. " Tata Motors maintained its market leadership in the electric car segment by selling 4,351 units during May. JSW MG Motor sold 3,765 electric cars in May, while Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) stood third with 2,632 units during the month.
According to FADA data, these top three electric car companies account for more than 87 percent of the total sales in this segment. FADA estimates that due to disruptions in the supply of rare earth minerals, the entire global EV system may be affected. Due to this, there may be a decrease in the production of EVs, which can also have an impact on retail sales. China, which dominates in the supply of rare earth minerals, has recently started imposing some restrictions on their export. This has increased the risk of creating supply chain problems.
The central government has launched a new scheme to attract investment in the electric vehicle segment from global car manufacturers in India. The objective of this scheme is to develop India as a global manufacturing hub in the electric car segment.