![\"Charged](\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-131787521,imgsize-108222,width-400,height-225,resizemode-72\/delhi39s-ambitious-plan-to-mandate-electric-two-wheeler-registrations-from-2028-faces-a-reality-check.jpg\" "\\"Delhi's")
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nNEW DELHI: For years, the possibility of a weekend ride to Agra or Mathura barely required a second thought for Sandeep Gupta.The 52-year-old from RK Puram, who runs a confectionery business, would simply check whether his motorcycle had enough fuel and head out. The petrol bike, bought in 2007, carried him across Delhi and neighbouring cities for nearly 15 years. Distance was never part of the calculation.Three years ago, he switched to an electric scooter. And while the vehicle has significantly reduced his commuting costs, it has also altered the way he thinks about travel.\u201cInside Delhi, it works perfectly,\u201d said Gupta. \u201cBut when someone suddenly suggests going beyond NCR, I hesitate.\u201dHis dilemma captures the larger debate unfolding in the capital as Delhi prepares for perhaps its most ambitious mobility transition yet. The Draft EV Policy 2.0, 2026-30, proposes that from April 1, 2028, only electric two-wheelers will be eligible for new registrations. Petrol and CNG motorcycles and scooters would effectively disappear from the new vehicle market. Fleet aggregators have already been barred from adding new petrol or diesel vehicles, while all existing commercial two-wheelers are expected to transition to electric by 2030.The proposal is designed to accelerate Delhi\u2019s shift towards cleaner transport. However, it also raises a question confronting lakhs of riders: is the city ready to give up petrol-powered two-wheelers? For Gupta, the switch was driven less by environmental concerns and more by economics.\u201cEvery few months, there would be something to spend on, like PUC. Sometimes, I would forget to renew the pollution certificate and end up paying fines. Neighbours frequently borrowed the motorcycle, and rising petrol prices started affecting budget. And there would often be news that govt may ban vehicles that did not follow a particular emission norm,\u201d he said.After buying an electric scooter in 2023, Gupta said his charging bills are much lower now. \u201cIf I charge around an hour to an hour-and-a-half, the scooter can run 100 km. The pickup is good and the noise is next to nil. For city use, it works very well.\u201dYet, anxieties remain when it comesto long journeys. While conventional motorcycle mechanics are available in nearly every neighbourhood market, EVs often require authorised service centres. Gupta once faced a battery malfunction during severe monsoon waterlogging. \u201cI got the issue fixed, but mechanics are not easy to find,\u201d he said.His concerns are reflected in the number of electric bikes being used in Delhi. Despite years of incentives since the first EV policy came out in 2020, petrol motorcycles continue to dominate the capital\u2019s roads. So far this year, petrol and petrol-E20 motorcycles accounted for nearly 91.3% of all two-wheeler registrations while electric two-wheelers represented just 8.7%. Compared to over 2.2 lakh petrol-powered two-wheelers registered, merely 21,530 EVs were registered.The pattern has remained consistent. In 2025, electric two-wheelers accounted for roughly 7% of registrations. The EV segment recorded its strongest performance in 2023, reaching around 9.3% market share, aided by subsidies under Delhi\u2019s first EV policy. Registrations climbed from just 7,549 in 2021 to 37,566 in 2023, beforemoderating in subsequent years. The figures suggest that while EVs have become visible, they remain far from the mainstream.The visibility is perhaps the strongest among gig workers. Like thousands of riders powering the city\u2019s app-based delivery economy, Mohammad Sajid spends most of his workday on an electric scooter, navigating traffic to deliver parcels. He doesn\u2019t own the vehicle,but instead rents it for Rs 255 a day.The arrangement makes financial sense. Lower running costs allow him to complete deliveries across multiple platforms without worrying about fluctuating fuel prices. Yet, the electric scooter serves only one purpose: work. \u201cFor personal use, I still need a petrol bike,\u201d Sajid said.His approach illustrates an emerging pattern in Delhi\u2019s mobility transition. For many delivery riders, EVs are increasingly becoming tools of employment rather than complete replacements for conventional vehicles.According to a senior Delhi govt official, the market always follows the regulations. \u201cThe transition is still two years away. We have given enough time.\u201dTransport minister Pankaj Singh said Delhi govt has held meetings with manufacturers and many of them are coming up with new bike models that would be seen in upcoming auto expos. \u201cAll stakeholders are positive and there is already a lotof investment by companies in the research and development of EV vehicles,\u201d he added.Singh said govt plans to install about 8,000 new charging stations by the end of this year. \u201cMany of these will be under PM\u2019s e-drive scheme,\u201d he added.According to the action plans to combat air pollution, which were submitted to CAQM earlier this year, Delhi has 8,998 EV charging points against a requirement of36,177, leaving a shortfall of 27,179.For many, the transition from petrol to electric has been smooth and without hiccups. Software engineer Jugnu Singh,who commutes daily from Sector 77 in Noida to her office in Ghaziabad\u2019s Vaishali, recently bought an electric scooter, a decision shaped by practicality rather than ideology.\u201cI already had a car and my husband has a bike, so getting fuel refilled in three vehicles would have been a headache,\u201d she said. \u201cThe scooter cost about Rs 1.2 lakh, which is more than a petrol scooty, but it costs roughly Rs 12 in electricity for nearly 90 km. For the same distance, I would spend Rs 200 on a petrol vehicle.\u201dFast-charging facilities near her workplace and residence have further reduced anxiety. According to Singh, even a short 10-minute charge can provide a useful top-up, while a full charge takes about an hour. Unlike Gupta, who worries about long-distance travel, Singh sees the electric scooter as an ideal commuting machine.While most people are at different stages of the same transition, what connects them is that none of their decisions were driven primarily by govt targets or environmental messaging. Instead, they were shaped by everyday calculations about money, convenience and practicality.For urban professionals making predictable daily journeys, the economics are compelling. Singh\u2019s experience also reflects a trend policymakers hope to encourage — households gradually replacing at least one conventional vehicle with an electric alternative.To accelerate that shift, Delhi\u2019s draft policy proposes a fresh incentive structure. Electric two-wheelers with an ex-factory price below Rs 2.2 lakh would be eligible for subsidies ranging from Rs 10,000 per kilowatt-hour in the first year, capped at Rs 30,000, to lower incentives in subsequent years. Buyers scrapping older BS-IV and below two-wheelers could also receive an additional Rs 10,000 incentive when purchasing a new EV.Bike expert Krishanu Kona, a resident of Kondli, who undertook an epic 50,338-km ride across 25 states of India in 2015-2016, pointed out that theEV market is currently heavily tilted towards scooters, with little innovation in motorcycles, except a couple of companies. \u201cHowever, the newly-biked launched bikes are largely going to be used for city commuting. If I have to go to Ladakh, I would, any day, prefer a petrol bike.\u201dAccording to Shweta Chithrode, a biker who runs AutoUpshot, \u201cWhen it comes to the biking community, new brands are entering the market. However, making bikes alone is not enough; it also needs to be ensured that riders do not face range anxiety.\u201dShe added: \u201cIf you are trying to sell electric superbikes, you have to work on two fronts. First, there must be adequate charging infrastructure along highways. Second, charging should be fast. If I am on a long ride and have to spend an hour charging the bike, it becomes a major dampener. I have seen some companies working in that direction. One variant also allows bikes to be charged using car charging points.\u201dChithrode recently completed a ride of about 300km through the Western Ghats on an electric motorcycle. \u201cThe overall experience was good because I do extensive research and planning before undertaking any ride. However, for casual riders, petrol motorcycles remain the first choice. For electric bikes to become the preferred option, greater investment is needed in highway charging infrastructure,\u201d she said.A manufacturer, not wishing to be named, said, \u201cElectric scooters dominate India\u2019s EV market because their design naturally accommodates battery packs beneath the floorboard and seat, making them more practical and cost-effective than motorcycles.\u201dManufacturers focused their early investments on electric scooters, reducing development costs and accelerating innovation. Scooters are also ideally suited for short commutes, where EVs offer significant savings on fuel and maintenance, he said. The urban commuter segment had already turned into a market.In contrast, creating e-motorcycles that can match the speed, power delivery and long-distance capability of mid-sized petrol bikes demands far more complex engineering, battery management and higher development costs, he said, noting that some popular bike makers plan to enter the electric motorcycle segment.Delhi\u2019s proposed 2028 deadline seeks to reshape one of India\u2019s largest two-wheeler markets. Yet, the registration figures suggest the city still has considerable distance to travel. Nine out of 10 new two-wheelers registered run on conventional fuel. The next two years will determine whether that ratio can be reversed.<\/div>\n