E-Taxi or Electric Taxi, one of the most ambitious initiatives taken up by the NDA government to tackle our country's air pollution has finally come to fruition as Hyderabad's Rajiv Gandhi International Airport became the first place to introduce the E-Taxi. Marking the occasion of World Environment Day on June 5, 2017 Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) Mayor B. Rammohan garu has inaugurated the E-Taxi services her on Monday.
The E-Taxi concept could be one of the game changers in India's electricity sector as well as bring down the air pollution levels as the vehicles running on electricity have very little release of greenhouse gases. These taxis which will be run in Hyderabad on a pilot basis were developed by Green Mile Transportation Private Limited (GMTPL).
Once fully charged, the cars would run for 100 kms and is cost effective as the fuel is Rs. 1 per km. Currently there are two recharging stations for these cars-one at RGIA and one at Jubilee Hills Check Post. Since they are run on a pilot basis, there are five of these vehicles currently at the passengers' service. According to GMTPL Director Ramineni Raj Phani, if the services are a success, then the count will be increased to 25 and the charging stations to 9 in the next two months.
At present each car costs around 12 Lakhs, but if they prove to be the best alternative for other fossil-fuelled cars, we could see more reduction in the costs.
