Even as the Institute of Road Transport has floated tenders for procuring 100 electric buses for the Metropolitan Transport Corporation and plans to add another 400 to the fleet of the State’s public transport system, the Tamil Nadu government is yet to come out with a policy on registering electric transport vehicles.
According to sources in the Transport Department, a proposal seeking guidelines on the registration of battery-operated electric vehicles was pending with the State government. However, tenders were floated for the purchase of 100 air-conditioned buses in June this year, and the last date for the submission of Expression of Interest documents from reputed national and international vehicle manufacturers ended in July.
Responding to a query filed by C. Manikandan of Virudhunagar under the Right to Information Act on the tourist permit and fee and tax structure for battery-operated electric buses, the Commissionerate of Transport and Road Safety said a clarification sought on the registration and fee details for the electric transport vehicles was under the consideration of the State government. Other electrical vehicles such as two-wheelers and cars were exempted from registration/renewal fee as per the guidelines of the Union government issued in August 2021.
