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The year 2024 marked a pivotal moment for electric mobility in India. Two-wheelers and three-wheelers continued to lead the electric vehicle (EV) segment, emerging as the most widely adopted battery-powered modes of transport on Indian roads. These vehicles are now increasingly becoming the primary means of private passenger transport.
According to the Global EV Outlook 2025 report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), “In India and Southeast Asia, two-wheelers and three-wheelers are the predominant modes of private passenger transport.”
The report further stated that these regions contributed nearly 80 per cent of global sales in this category.
In 2024, the global stock of electric two- and three-wheelers surpassed all other EV categories. However, the report notes that by 2030, electric cars are expected to outnumber them.
The stock of two-and three-wheelers is projected to double and reach 170 million by the end of the decade.
The report highlights that two- and three-wheeled EVs are the most affordable and accessible entry point into electric mobility.
Their use of removable batteries has enabled home charging and encouraged the growth of battery swapping stations — an increasingly effective solution for sectors like delivery and taxis.
Battery swapping on the rise
India is witnessing rapid growth in battery swapping infrastructure. As of April 2024, Battery Smart had surpassed 1,000 battery swapping stations, while Sun Mobility was operating 630 such stations across 19 cities.
EV manufacturers are also expanding in this area.
The report noted that the Italian manufacturer Piaggio plans to deploy 10,000 electric three-wheelers across India equipped with swappable batteries, supported by the rollout of 300 new battery swapping stations.”
India became the world’s largest market for electric three-wheelers in 2023, overtaking China, and maintained that lead in 2024. This year, sales rose by 20 per cent to nearly 700,000 units, with electric vehicles accounting for a record 57 per cent share of the total three-wheeler market.
This trend was further strengthened by the Prime Minister’s e-DRIVE scheme, which in 2024 provided support for over 300,000 electric three-wheelers for commercial use. According to the report, “India’s total three-wheeler fleet — including internal combustion engine (ICE) and electric vehicles — exceeded 10 million in 2023.”
India has also made major strides in the electric bus segment. In October 2024, the government approved the deployment of 38,000 electric buses nationwide under the PM e-Bus Seva scheme, with a budget of approximately Rs 3,440 crore.
The newly launched PM e-DRIVE scheme, introduced in October 2024, focuses exclusively on electric two- and three-wheelers, buses, trucks, and charging infrastructure, and notably excludes electric cars. The scheme has a total budget of $ 1.3 billion and will run through to March 2026.
According to the report, “The PM e-Drive policy effectively replaces FAME-II and the Electric Mobility Promotion Scheme, providing purchase incentives for emerging EV segments.” For electric two-wheelers with lithium-ion batteries, a subsidy of up to Rs 5,000 per kilowatt-hour is being offered. The scheme aims to support the rollout of 2.5 million electric two-wheelers by March 2026 — two and a half times the 1 million target under FAME-II.
India’s electric two-wheeler market became more dynamic in 2024.
The number of active original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) increased from 180 in 2023 to 220 in 2024. However, the top four companies accounted for 80 per cent of the 1.3 million electric two-wheelers sold. EVs constituted six per cent of the overall two-wheeler market in 2024.
Affordability rules
Although electric two-wheelers are still more expensive than their petrol counterparts, growing competition is prompting companies to launch more affordable models. For example, Ola introduced the S1X model —with a 2kWh battery and 6kW peak power — at Rs 70,000, making it cheaper than the top five bestselling ICE two-wheelers.
In terms of production, the combined capacity of 80 leading electric two-wheeler manufacturers reached 10 million units in 2024 — eight times the year’s domestic sales. If all announced plans come to fruition, this capacity could rise to 17 million units in the near future.
Although there are no purchase subsidies for electric cars in India, the government is promoting EVs through vehicle scrappage policies, GST concessions, state-level tax exemptions, and Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes.
In March 2024, the central government approved a new policy to boost electric car manufacturing, allowing global investors to import vehicles at a reduced import duty of 15 per cent — down from the previous 70 to 100 per cent.
Furthermore, the government has drafted new CO₂ emission standards —CAFE III (2027–2032) and CAFE IV (2033–2037) — that set targets of 91.7g CO₂/km and 70g CO₂/km, respectively, under WLTP standards. “These regulations will include a super-credit mechanism, making it easier to comply through the sale of electric vehicles rather than conventional models.”
According to the report’s policy-based scenario, electric cars accounted for just two per cent of new car sales in India in 2024, a figure that could rise to nearly 15 per cent by 2030.
At present, excluding two- and three-wheelers, only one in every 50 vehicles sold in India is electric. However, by 2030, this could improve to one in every eight. When including two and three-wheelers one in every three vehicles sold in India by 2030 is expected to be electric.
Southeast Asia is also experiencing a sharp rise in EV sales, driven by growing manufacturing and supportive policies. By 2030, 25 per cent of cars, 30 per cent of two- and three-wheelers and 15 per cent of buses sold in the region are expected to be electric.
This article is part of our series on how India moves, which looks at the relationship between air quality and human mobility in cities and towns.
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