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Rajiv Bajaj on new EV makers: People who have no business to be in the business of EV are trying

Bajaj Auto recently inaugurated a new production plant in Akurdi Pune, Maharashtra. It will be producing only electric vehicles such as Chetak. During the inauguration, Rajiv Bajaj said that the people who have no business being in the business of electric vehicles are trying to be in the space. He also said that the EV fires are not an issue, the issue is within the manufacturing process.

Rajiv Bajaj on new EV makers: People who have no business to be in the business of EV are trying

Rajiv Bajaj, Chairman of Bajaj Auto said, The issue is not the fire itself. This (such incidents) happened in the vehicles with internal combustion engines as well. The issue is the underlying process of manufacturing. What concerns me more is the environment that has promoted this mad whole rush. Why are people who have no business to be in the business of EVs trying to get into the business? This must be fixed. Maybe, if I can say so, the relevant authorities in the government have diluted norms for EVs.”

He added, It (EVs flooding the market) may partly be because of the incentives as well. Under the guise of low-speed vehicles you can bring any chunk of vehicles from anywhere and put it on the road. You will not have these scooters catching fire? What do you expect?”

Rajiv Bajaj on new EV makers: People who have no business to be in the business of EV are trying

The comment was made regarding the recent electric fires that we have seen in the past few months. Electric vehicles in India are catching fire because of various reasons. The government also launched a probe to find the reasons behind this. The probe said that the main issue is with the faulty battery cells. Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) sent out a notice to Pure EV and Boom Motors. Moreover, it is expected that the government will make new quality-centric guidelines for Electric Vehicles. Till now Ather, TVS and Bajaj’s electric scooters have not caught any fires. Ather’s CEO, Tarun Mehta said, many electric vehicle battery packs are not designed for Indian conditions.

New production plant

Bajaj also unveiled Chetak Technology Ltd. CTL and its vendor partners will be investing around Rs. 750 Crores in the new electric vehicle manufacturing facility which is spread over 6.5 acres and has a manufacturing capacity of 5 lakh units annually.

Rajiv Bajaj, Chairman – Chetak Technology Ltd. on the commencement of production in the new plant said, “Chetak is the original ‘Make in India’ superstar, which won hearts worldwide. True to those designed-and-built-in-India roots, the electric avatar of Chetak is born out of our strong R&D, deep understanding of products & consumers, and decades of manufacturing expertise.” He further added, “Today on the 84th birthday of Bajaj Auto’s late Chairman Emeritus Shri Rahul Bajaj, we have delivered on our commitment to commission this centre of excellence for Chetak by June 2022. This focused, integrated and agile facility is intended to power the Chetak’s ride back to the future.”

Bajaj Chetak

Bajaj currently only has Chetak electric scooter in their line-up. It is sold in two variants. There is Urbane which is priced at Rs. 1 lakh and then there is Premium which costs Rs. 1.15 lakhs. For the additional money, you get a rear disc brake, tan-coloured seats and metallic colour options.

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