India’s thrust for electric vehicles got a leg up with a unit inside IIT Madras developing motors and sub-assemblies indigenously and signing agreements with manufacturers for commercial usage. The first of the motors with design details will be delivered on August 15.

CHENNAI: Adopting a twin approach — to wean away from dirty energy and also evangelising renewable energy — IIT Madras Research Park may set up micro nuclear plants, tap into low intensity ocean waves or set up large hydrogen storage to energise its operations. And in the process add to its sustainable portfolio. IIT Madras Research Park, designed on the models of Bay Area is a confluence of industry and academia.

Global warming is a major challenge all over the world today. If the world fails to act fast on it, the earth will be in serious trouble over the next twenty to twenty-five years. The global warming is largely due high use of fossil-based energy in the world. India ranks 142nd in the world in terms of per-capita electricity consumption. One may feel that with such low per-capita consumption, the onus on reversing global warming does not lie with us and should be taken up by those who consume over ten times or more energy as compared to India’s.

At the time of independence, India had practically no modern technical base and it needed rapid development and new technologies. Five IITs were created as “cornerstones in building the industrial, scientific and technological edifice of the nation” in 1950’s. They were entirely autonomous institutions, supported by some of the best international universities and fully funded by Government of India at a level much higher than other institutions. The Quality was supposed to be the hallmark.

India needs Electric Vehicles (EVs) more than most other countries. We have fourteen of the twenty most polluted cities in the world. Our oil import bill severely impacts our economy. Electric Vehicles, with four-times higher energy efficiency as compared to the petrol vehicles, would be the obvious way to go.