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E-rickshaws
Bajaj Auto Ltd, which made its foray into the e-rickshaw segment with Riki this year, plans to increase its presence in 200 cities by January to March next year, according to a senior company official. The company, which started a pilot test of Riki with four cities, has now scaled up its presence to eight at present as part of phase I, Bajaj Auto Executive Director Rakesh Sharma told PTI. "We've launched it in four cities, now it has become eight cities, including Patna, Moradabad, Guwahati, and Raipur... We are right now in phase one, where for another month or so we will be observing it as to what is the feedback from the customers, and what should be the communication and promotion strategy," Sharma said when asked about pan-India expansion plans for the Riki. After that, he said, "In the January, February, March period, we will scale up our presence from eight to 200 cities and towns. Once we see the traction there, then we will start to get into numbers and what kind of volume
In a move to regulate the movement of e-rickshaws, known as totos in West Bengal, the state Transport department has made vehicle registration mandatory. A transport department statement said on Saturday that all e-rickshaws should have a digitised temporary toto enrollment number (TTEN) and the process must be completed by November 30. The process for registering under TTEN will start on October 13. A new portal will track registered e-rickshaws using QR codes, allowing the authorities to monitor vehicle activity and prevent new illegal totos from operating. Transport Secretary Saumitra Mohan said the government is cracking down on unregistered and unsafe e-rickshaws, and district magistrates have been instructed to identify and remove unregistered battery-operated e-rickshaws manufactured by local garages. "Many of these e-rickshaws don't abide by the Central Motor Vehicles, 1989 guidelines and hence the district authorities will issue notice for sealing those units which don't
The government is mulling safety standards for e-rickshaws on the lines of Bharat NCAP to enhance road safety measures, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said on Thursday. Addressing the 7th Edition of FICCI Road Safety Awards and Symposium, the Minister for Road, Transport and Highways said road safety is an important issue for the government. Nearly five lakh road accidents occur in the country annually, claiming 1.8 lakh lives. Of 1.8 lakh deaths, around 66.4 per cent of people belong to the age group of 18 to 45 years, Gadkari said, stressing awareness towards following traffic rules and assisting accident victims in hospitalisation. "We are also bringing in Bharat NCAP-like standards for e-rickshaws as these are in huge numbers (across the country). We are assessing how we can improve safety in this," he said. In 2023, Gadkari launched the Bharat NCAP (New Car Assessment Programme), which is aimed at improving road safety standards of motor vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes. Speaking furt
An e-rickshaw driver died after a car being driven by a 16-year-old boy rammed into his three-wheeler in southwest Delhi's Dwarka, police said on Saturday. The incident took place around 11.15 am on Friday on the Dwarka Nala Road stretch, they said The teenage boy was accompanied by his younger sister, a senior police officer said, adding that after losing control, the car overturned and crashed into an oncoming e-rickshaw, critically injuring its 40-year-old driver, a resident of Najafgarh. "The victim was rushed to a nearby hospital but succumbed to severe head injuries. He was declared unfit to give a statement before he passed away," said a senior police officer. He added that initial findings suggest the car was being driven at a high speed and flipped before colliding with the rickshaw. The police said the vehicle, a private car owned by the boy's father, was being driven without a valid licence. The minor reportedly took the car out without permission, the officer added. "
Electric vehicle maker Omega Seiki Mobility on Thursday said it will provide women drivers with 2,500 specially-designed pink auto rickshaws on lower prices pan-India in a phased manner. The scheme, as part of the company's corporate social responsibility (CSR) programme, was rolled out on Wednesday in the national capital, benefitting 500 women drivers. These drivers will also get 1 per cent subsidy on interest on vehicle financing from a leading state-run lender, Omega Seiki Mobility said. The company said it has collaborated with Delhi-based not-for-profit organisation Nari Shakti. "Our partnership with Naari Shakti is more than just a CSR initiative. It's a step toward social transformation. By enabling women to take the driver's seat, literally and metaphorically, we're not just offering them a vehicle, we're offering a path to independence, dignity, and opportunity," said Uday Narang, Founder and Chairman of Omega Seiki Mobility. In the coming months, the scheme will be ...
Bajaj Auto is gearing up to enter the domestic e-rickshaw segment by the end of this fiscal to tap a 'sizable opportunity' in a fast-growing but highly unorganised market, according to a top company official. The company expects to get regulatory clearances towards the end of the ongoing quarter for its e-rickshaw that will enable it to enter the segment which is about 45,000 units a month, Bajaj Auto Executive Director Rakesh Sharma told analysts. "By the end of this financial year, we also intend to launch a modern 'e-rick', which will set an absolutely new standard in the segment and bring a very high level of satisfaction to both owners and passengers. The e-rick segment is almost as large as the auto segment and the new e-Rick should generate new business, he said. When asked for the exact timeline, Sharma said, "We expect to launch the e-rick by the end of this quarter, let's say, by the end of the FY25 fiscal. By the time all the permissions are through, it may just spill ov
The West Bengal transport department has decided to streamline the registration of e-rickshaws and phase out unregistered and illegally manufactured vehicles. The decision was taken in view of representations from various bodies about the plying of lakhs of unregistered e-rickshaws built in workshops without following any standard manufacturing procedures or safety guidelines. A senior transport department official said that district magistrates have been asked to identify battery-operated unregistered e-rickshaws built clandestinely at local garages and phase them out in a time-bound manner. Transport Secretary Saumitra Mohan, in a notice issued on September 12, said, "Representations have been received from different stakeholders in connection with non-compliance of guidelines for registration of e-rickshaws, duly manufactured by different companies including original equipment manufacturers, after obtaining the approval from the competent authority." As per the Central Motor ...
The Delhi government's Transport Department will soon start scrapping unregistered e-rickshaws that have been impounded, officials said on Friday. Before being handed over to a scrapper, they will be crushed using a roller, they added. Owners of such unregistered e-rickshaws will be given a week's time to get them registered and if they fail to do so, their vehicles will be impounded and handed over to a Registered Vehicle Scrapping Facility, the official said. "Before being scrapped, they will be crushed using a cutter and crusher, a senior official said. The decision comes after a high-level review meeting held by the LG to decongest the city, during which instructions were given to put a check on the illegal proliferation of e-rickshaws. According to official figures, there are approximately 1.2 lakh registered e-rickshaws in the national capital. However, there are many plying on the road without valid registration causing congestion and safety hazards. The department recentl
The central government under its Smart City Mission has felicitated Jammu smart city for its e-mobility project, which includes successful operations of e-autos and e-rickshaws, officials said on Thursday. The city got the award under urban environment category of India Smart Cities Awards Contest (ISAC)in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. The ISAC is organised under the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs' Smart Cities Mission. It rewards cities, projects, and innovative ideas that promote sustainable development across 100 smart cities. Jammu Smart City bagged the third spot under the Urban Environment Project category while first and position in this category was bagged by Indore and Shivamogga (Karnataka), officials said. A total of 75 proposals submitted by 48 cities contended for these awards. Jammu Smart City Limited CEO Rahul Yadav received the award from Union Minister for Housing and Urban Development Hardeep Singh Puri. "The award comes as a testament to the Jammu Smart
An influx of tourists and e-rickshaws plying in the zero zone here led to a massive traffic jam here for the second consecutive day on Saturday, causing inconvenience to people. No vehicles are allowed in the nearly one-kilometre-long zero zone which stretches from the municipality building to the Chandrabhaga bridge. The town witnessed similar scenes on Friday as the long weekend began but the situation is worse today, said a shopkeeper in the Lakshman Jhoola area. The entry of e-rickshaws in the zero zone was prohibited after a meeting of the administration and transport department on Thursday. However, as droves of tourists arrived here, around 1,500 e-rickshaws entered the zero zone on Saturday, causing a traffic jam from Rishikesh to Shivpuri. The impact was also seen in Neelkanth and Lakshman Jhoola areas with vehicles moving at a snail's pace. Superintendent of Police, Dehradun (Rural), Kamlesh Upadhyay said the ban on the entry of e-rickshaws in the zero zone will be stri
Rajasthan's Minister of State for Transport Brijendra Ola on Friday assured the House that effective steps would be taken for smooth plying of e-rickshaws in the Ajmer city. Ola was replying to a calling attention motion moved by BJP MLA Vasudev Devnani during Zero Hour in the Rajasthan Assembly on Friday. The minister said that on receipt of applications for e-rickshaws in the Ajmer city, registration and licenses are made according to rules. In Ajmer city, 1,672 passenger e-rickshaws and 153 heavy vehicle e-carts are registered. He informed that 125 permanent licenses and 1,357 learning licenses for e-rickshaws have been issued by the Transport Department. Between January 1, 2021 and February 28, 2023, the traffic police and transport department have issued 5,019 challans against e-rickshaws in the Ajmer city by taking action in accordance with the rules, Ola said. The Transport Minister said more effective action will be taken in the next one month for the smooth operation of .