Tesla executives, including its head of policy in India, Manuj Khurana, took the company’s demands to Modi’s officials last month in a closed-door meeting
As electric vehicle giant Tesla lobbies to enter the Indian market, Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar has urged the US-based can to manufacture its electric vehicles in India, while assuring the company that it will get the tax benefits it wants from the government.
This comes as Tesla has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s office to slash import taxes on electric vehicles before it enters the market.
Kumar further said Tesla should not just ship its products into India as this will not create jobs in the country.
“Come and manufacture in India, you (Tesla) will get all the tax benefits you want,” he said while replying to a question about the company’s demand related to tax concessions.
“The argument that we will create a market by exporting into India finished products… is an old argument and we have moved on from that,” Kumar added.
As per media reports, Tesla executives, including its head of policy in India, Manuj Khurana, took the company’s demands to Modi’s officials last month in a closed-door meeting.
The Elon Musk-led company had previously, in reply to a Twitter user, said that the import duty in the country is one of the highest in the world, suggesting a duty cut would be necessary for the EV maker to make its fray into the country.
This sentiment was echoed by several other automakers as well, but was met with heavy disdain from domestic EV players.
During the meeting at Modi’s office, Tesla said that India’s duty structure would not make its business in the country a “viable proposition”, according to Reuters.
Earlier, in a letter to the road ministry, the Elon Musk-led firm had stated that the effective import tariff of 110 per cent on vehicles with customs value above USD 40,000 is “prohibitive” for zero-emission vehicles.
It has requested the government to standardise the tariff on electric cars to 40 per cent irrespective of the customs value, and withdraw the social welfare surcharge of 10 per cent on electric cars.
