Maharashtra implements use of electric vehicles for govt bodies from January 2022
Aaditya Thackeray, Maharashtra Environment and Tourism Minister, announced on Sunday that the state government will begin purchasing or renting electric vehicles for government and urban local bodies on January 1. "In keeping with our commitment to clean mobility and encouraging citizens, the Maharashtra government has decided to implement the decision of purchasing or renting only electric vehicles for the government/urban local bodies/corporations from 1st January 2022 instead of 1st April 2022," Aaditya Thackeray said in a tweet. "I'm grateful to CM Uddhav Thackeray ji, DCM Ajit Pawar ji, and RM Balasaheb Thorat ji for their support to @MahaEnvCC's ambitious climate action policies to ensure the Govt's actions further encourage citizens for climate mitigation, adaptation, and resilience actions," he continued. "The adoption of electric cars (EVs) contributes to a wide variety of sustainability goals," according to Maharashtra's EV policy for 2021 Better air quality, less noise pollution, more energy security, and lower greenhouse gas emissions are just a few of the benefits. With automobile pollution becoming a more significant source of air pollution in Maharashtra and contributing significantly to particulate pollution in cities, rapid adoption of zero-tailpipe-emission vehicles is critical, particularly in heavily polluted metropolitan areas." By 2025, the state government wants to convert 15% of the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) bus fleet to electric vehicles.