“With over 400 R&D centres, 45+ EV startups & an EV cluster near Bengaluru, Karnataka has emerged as EV hub of India. Mr @elonmusk, Karnataka would be an ideal destination to set up @Tesla plant. Bengaluru is already Tesla’s maiden address in India,” Karnataka Minister for Large and Medium-scale Industries Murugesh R Nirani tweeted.
With over 400 R&D centres, 45+ EV startups & an EV cluster near Bengaluru, Karnataka has emerged as EV hub of India… https://t.co/9OqvneLOcH
— Dr. Murugesh R Nirani (@NiraniMurugesh) 1642495976000
Last week, Musk tweeted that the US-based firm is working through a lot of challenges with the government to launch its products in India.
“Still working through a lot of challenges with the government,” Musk tweeted in reply to a Twitter user, who asked: “Yo @elonmusk any further update as to when Tesla’s will launch in India? They’re pretty awesome and deserve to be in every corner of the world!”
Also Read:Stop-and-go traffic: the story of Tesla in India
The main hurdle the world’s most valuable automaker faces in India is – high taxes.
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Tesla’s request for tax cuts was first reported in July 2021, when sources told Reuters that the company had written to Indian ministries seeking a big reduction in import duties on electric vehicles. Soon after, Musk tweeted that Tesla was likely to set up a factory in India if successful with imported vehicles.
Meanwhile, local players such as Mahindra & Mahindra opposed Tesla’s request for slashing duties, arguing that it would hurt investments in domestic manufacturing.
At present, cars imported as completely built units (CBUs) attract customs duty, ranging from 60 to 100%, depending on the engine size and cost, insurance and freight (CIF) value less or above $40,000.
