New Delhi, Sep 2 : The makers of electric vehicles on Friday welcomed the updated battery safety guidelines issued by the government as fears of consumers grow regarding battery explosions and fire incidents, particularly in the two-wheelers of EVs.The recently-released guidelines issued of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highway include modifications to safety standards pertaining to batteries, the on-board chargers, the design of battery packs, as well as thermal propagation caused by short-circuits within the cell, which can cause fire.
The draft notification was released following the Ministry created an expert group to recommend further safety standards in the current battery safety standards.This comes after numerous battery fires ravaged the nation in the past year.
More than two dozen electric bikes caught on fire in April and March, a total of 7000 units were “voluntarily” recalls by electric scooter manufacturers like Ola, Pure EV, and Okinawa.
According to Dr.Akshay Singhal, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Log9 Materials, an advanced battery technology startup that is also a deep-technology startup, safety standards are long overdue.
“With the safety regulations and guidelines being conceptualized and designed to meet Indian operating conditions We are certain that in the near future, each battery maker and the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) will accept the full responsibility and go above and beyond to make sure that each electric vehicle that makes it to Indian roads is most secure of the bunch,” Singhal said in an announcement.
The addition of batteries, on-board chargers and battery pack design and heat generation due to a short circuit that could cause fire encompasses all crucial variables “that could compromise a customer’s security, and provide an additional incentive for EV acceptance,” he noted.
The Centre has recommended that there be additional security requirements in the current battery safety standard with starting on October 1st.
In response to the suggestions of an expert committee report In response to the recommendations of an expert committee report Ministry has issued amendments to AIS 156’s specific requirements for motor vehicles of L category (motor vehicles with less than four wheels and quadricycles) with electric powertrain.
It also issued an amendment to AIS 038-specific requirements for Electric Power Train of motor vehicles of M category (motor vehicle with at minimum four wheels that are used to transport passengers) and N category (motor vehicle with at four wheels to transport goods that could also carry people in addition to items).
Kalyan C.Korimerla Kalyan C.Korimerla, Managing Director, Etrio Automobiles Pvt Ltd, stated that the added safety standards for battery cells BMS, battery packs and others.When they are put into place will greatly assist the OEMs gain the trust of end-users of electric vehicles by releasing robust and secure vehicles.
“Safety standards like these are crucial in not just helping save lives and reducing damage to fleet assets however, they also play a crucial role in making people feel secure in moving to electric cars,” he said.
A recent report found that just 1 percent household owners plan to purchase an electric scooter in the next 6 months due to the safety and performance concerns as the government investigates numerous incidents in electric bicycles.
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