CESL to help Gram Panchayats set up EV charging stations
The Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj and CESL will collaborate to develop electric vehicle infrastructure on Panchayat-owned land.
The Government of India plans to enable Gram Panchayats to develop electric vehicle (EV) charging and battery-swapping infrastructure on land owned by the Panchayats, according to The Hindu.
The Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) and Convergence Energy Services Ltd (CESL) are exploring the development of these facilities across Gram, Block, and District Panchayats nationwide.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to establish a framework for this collaboration was exchanged in New Delhi by MoPR Joint Secretary Mukta Shekhar and CESL CEO Akhilesh Kumar Dixit.
The initiative aims to create sustainable revenue for rural local bodies by converting unutilised public assets into economic resources through Own Source Revenue (OSR).
The project is intended to support climate action and the transition to cleaner mobility while catering to various types of electric vehicles.
Ms. Shekhar noted that the initiative provides a way for Gram Panchayats to participate in the country's shift towards clean mobility.