An eight-year study conducted by IIT-Roorkee, University of Minnesota, US, and University of Surrey, UK, has shown that emissions from vehicles in Delhi have increased by three times between 1991 and 2011, and this could rise to 19 times by 2020. Taxis and cars (30-34%) were found to be producing the highest CO2 emissions during 2011-2015, and there is the likelihood of buses dominating the scene with higher pollution in the years after 2015.
Given the growing concern about pollution and public health in the Indian capital and to realize the Government vision of a clean and pollution-free India, Smart Dreams, a new brand created by Dr. Bhupendra Kumar Modi, a Singapore-based entrepreneur, investor and philanthropist, has announced a partnership with BYD Auto Industry Co. Ltd., the world’s leading electric vehicle manufacturer, and has offered two pure-electric buses to the Delhi Government for trial runs. These buses are currently being tested on a commercial route pre-allocated by the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC).
Said Dr. Modi: “The Government is committed to turn the country into smart and clean India and has announced many initiatives and projects in this direction. In an environment where development is being directed towards sustainable co-existence, I believe that this will be a highly successful project for the Smart Group. We have partnered with the world’s largest player in the e-vehicle market, BYD Company Ltd. (BYD), to bring in world-class technology to the country.”
He added: “Today countries like China have given air quality the same priority as core sectors like infrastructure and defense, and it’s about time India did the same. The Indian Government will have to take bold steps and incentivize citizens and industry players to adopt electric vehicles. One of the ways we could encourage the industry is by making it a zero tax (duties, customs, excise, etc.) industry.”
Mr. Liu of BYD Company Ltd., observed: “Sixteen years ago, we had this dream about China, and we today have been able to achieve this through our consistent efforts. India is a very big market for us, and with the business environment being favorable we feel it’s the right time for us to capture the e-vehicle market of the country. We are proud to collaborate with the Smart Group in this endeavor in India.”
The buses offered to DTC are completely air-conditioned with first-class comfortable seating facilities and has a battery life of more than 4000 recharging cycles. They can cover a distance of 250 km with a fully charged battery. Further, the battery used is recyclable, and addresses this environmental concern as well. In line with the Government’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, the vehicles will be manufactured in India.
Power stations and grids remain underutilized during the night hours. With these e-vehicles being charged in the night, the energy will be utilized efficiently, thus resulting in a higher social return on capital.
With this move, Smart Dreams becomes the first and only Indian corporation to delve into production of pure-electric vehicles, with a primary focus on public transportation. It plans to enter public transportation through e-bus and e-taxi with pure-electric offerings.
BYD Company Ltd. is one of the world’s largest players in the electric vehicle space and the largest manufacturer of rechargeable batteries. Specializing in pure-electric vehicles, its green mission to “solve the whole problem” has made it an industry pioneer and leader in several high-tech sectors, including high-efficiency automobiles, electrified public transportation, environmentally-friendly energy storage, and affordable solar power and information technology.
In 2015, BYD sold the most renewable energy powered vehicles in the world making its presence in 190 cities across 43 countries. The company set up an electric bus manufacturing plant in southern California in 2014 and has a contract to supply electric buses to Los Angeles County. In the past two years, its electric buses or cars have gone into service from Montevideo (Uruguay) to Jakarta.