This comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that Kevadia would be developed as the country’s first electric vehicle only city
The country’s first electric vehicle (EV) only area will be developed in Gujarat’s Kevadia, the Statue of Unity Area Development and Tourism Governance Authority (SOUADTGA) has said in a statement.
The authority said that the area surrounding the 182-metre tall Statue of Unity in Kevadia in Gujarat’s Narmada district will be converted into an electric-vehicles-only area in a phased manner.
SOUADTGA said, “In the area under the authority, only electric vehicles will be allowed to ply, with the buses made available for tourists also running on battery power instead of diesel.”
A local resident of the area will be provided assistance to purchase a three-wheeled e-vehicle, it added.
Apart from the assistance provided by Gujarat Energy Development Agency (GEDA) – as announced by the state government – the SOUADTGA will also provide assistance in the form of subsidy to purchase such vehicles, it said.
The authority added that its officers and employees will also get the benefit of the scheme.
“The beneficiary officers/employees will have to pay the amount other than subsidy, and facilities will be provided to deduct the amount of loan from their salaries in easy instalments. Beneficiaries will have to guarantee that they will not operate petrol-diesel vehicles in the area,” it said.
The company operating the e-rickshaw will have to run at least 50 rickshaws in the area under the authority initially. Preference in driver selection for e-rickshaws will be given to women residents of the area as well as the existing autorickshaw drivers, it said.
The company operating the e-rickshaw will have to develop a smart mobile app for this, which will mention various tourist destinations in the area, their distances, and fixed fares, it said.
An E-vehicle maintenance workshop and charging station will also be set up.
This comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on the occasion of World Environment Day that Kevadia would be developed as the country’s first electric vehicle only city. He added that necessary infrastructure is being made available to run only battery-based buses, two-wheeler, four-wheeler in Kevadia in future.
