Develop fuel efficient cars for affluent Indians: Obama

I / Washington April 03, 2010, 13:24 IST

Arguing that more Indians are interested in buying cars due to their rising living standards, President Barack Obama has emphasised the need to develop fuel efficient vehicles to overcome the possible acute shortage of oil.

During a discussion on jobs and economy in Charlotte in North Carolina, Obama said America should make sure that such cars are made in the US.

"Think about it. China, if they get even half of the number of cars per capita, per population, that we have right now. There are a lot of folks in India. And their standards of living are all starting to rise and they're all starting to be interested in buying cars," Obama said.

"The fact of the matter is, is that if they even approach the amount of car ownership that we have, oil will run out very quickly and on the way, prices will just spike up naturally, no matter what we do," he said.

Obama said there was a huge need to increase fuel efficiency and that is why he raised the national fuel efficiency standard.

"But, frankly, even with us raising those standards, I think consumers just in terms of their pocketbook interests are going to be even more interested in buying hybrids and electric cars," he said.

Obama said America should make sure that those cars are made in the United States and said the second thing the country needs to do is to create the electricity grid, also known as the smart grid.

"We have got kind of a creaky infrastructure when it comes to electricity, and that's one of the major investments that we want to start making. And that, by the way, is an investment that only government, working with the private sector, can help to make," he added.

"We are going to have to help create that infrastructure, just like broadband lines, just like a whole bunch of basic 21st century infrastructure, so we've got the platform in order to succeed and compete economically.

"That's what the Chinese are doing. That's what the Indians are doing. That's what the Germans are doing. That's what the United States is going to have to do," Obama said.