Assam plans to take a leaf out of Delhi’s playbook to announce EV sales mandates

Assam plans to take a leaf out of Delhi’s playbook to announce EV sales mandates This is a Mint Premium article gifted to you.Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. New Delhi: Taking a leaf out of Delhi’s electric vehicle (EV) policy 2.0, the Assam government is ‘open to electrification mandates’ as it prepares its new EV policy, the state transport department told Mint. Delhi's EV Policy 2.0 announced in July, banned the sale of internal combustion engine (ICE) two-wheelers from April 2028 and three-wheelers from January 2027. Mint first reported on 10 September that Delhi’s electrification mandates could be replicated in other states, with the government’s think tank, Niti Aayog, consulting with state governments and assessing the impact of state-level EV policies. Assam’s commissioner of transport, Manavendra Pratap Singh, said in an emailed response that the state will continue to support EVs with a new policy—Assam EV Policy 2.0—in the works. The state’s EV policy launched in 2021 lapsed in September 2026. The development is significant because Assam ranked 19th and 5th in India for two- and three-wheeler sales, respectively, with around 500,000-600,000 vehicles registered annually. In response to a direct query about whether the Assam state government is open to implementing EV mandates like those enforced in Delhi, Singh said in an emailed response, “The State is open to electrification mandates, with setting up of EV charging stations, and details thereof will be available in due course of time in Assam’s EV policy 2.0.” Assam will soon provide a 3% motor vehicle tax concession for electric vehicles, the transport commissioner said. “A 3% MV tax subvention has been announced in Budget 2026-27 to support EV buyers, and it is to be notified soon,” the emailed response said. While details about Assam's new EV policy could not be ascertained at the time of publication, the state's 2021 EV Policy aimed to increase EV adoption, the share of EVs among newly registered…