NEW DELHI: Delhi cabinet Monday rejected a proposal to extend incentives to hybrid vehicles, opting instead to keep the capital’s new electric vehicle policy focused exclusively on battery-powered or “pure EVs”.The newly approved Delhi EV Policy 2026 introduces a three-year lock-in period, barring beneficiaries of govt subsidies from registering their electric vehicles in other states for three years.The final policy, however, has upheld the draft proposal on vehicle registration timelines, mandating that only electric three-wheelers (passenger and goods) will be registered from Jan 1, 2027, while only electric two-wheelers will be eligible for registration from April 1, 2028.“While the draft policy had proposed a 50% exemption on road tax and registration fees for strong hybrid cars priced up to Rs 30 lakh, the provision has been dropped from the policy cleared by cabinet,” said a senior official.Scrap old vehicle to buy new electric car, get Rs 1 lakh incentiveThe policy, which comes into effect from July 1, will remain in force until March 31, 2030.All electric cars with an exshowroom price of Rs 30 lakh or less registered in the national capital will be granted 100 per cent exemption on road tax and registration fees, as the Delhi govt approved a new EV policy on Monday.“Scrapping incentive of Rs 1,00,000 shall be provided upon purchase of a new electric car under this policy, subject to an ex-factory price not exceeding Rs 30 lakh, provided the purchase is made within six months of issuance of the Certificate of Deposit (CoD) from an authorised scrapping facility,” said a senior official.This incentive shall be applicable for the scrapping of Delhi-registered BS-IV and below cars and shall be limited to the first 1,00,000 eligible applicants, he added.CM Rekha Gupta said govt would invest around Rs 15,000 crore over the next four years to promote electric mobility and reduce vehicular pollution. She described the policy as a roadmap for making Delhi a pollution-free city by 2030.Buyers of electric twowheelers will receive a subsidy of up to Rs 30,000 in the first year, Rs 20,000 in the second year and Rs 10,000 in the third year. Electric three-wheelers will receive incentives of up to Rs 50,000 in the first year, Rs 40,000 in the second year and Rs 30,000 in the third year. Buyers of N1 category electric goods carriers, capable of carrying loads of up to 3.5 tonnes, will be eligible for purchase incentives of up to Rs 1 lakh.The policy also introduces scrapping incentives to encourage replacement of older, polluting vehicles. Gupta said that to support the growing EV fleet, govt plans to expand charging infrastructure across the city, targeting more than 30,000 charging points. A dedicated online portal will also be developed to process all incentives through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).Minister Ashish Sood said, “Every electric vehicle delivers a double dividend, it gives our children cleaner air to breathe while reducing India’s dependence on imported fossil fuels. It’s not just an environmental choice; it’s an economic and strategic investment in an Atmanirbhar Bharat.”Amit Bhatt, managing director for India at International Council on Clean Transportation, said, “Phasing out of ICE-powered twoand threewheelers could be a game changer in Delhi’s fight against air pollution. These segments account for a large share of the city’s vehicle fleet, and accelerating their transition to zero-emission vehicles can significantly reduce vehicular emissions, improve public health and pave the way for a broader transition to zeroemission transport across all vehicle segments.”
