Background
India is the world's third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases (GHG) after China and the United States, accounting for about 7% of global emissions. The country's emissions have been steadily increasing over the past few decades, largely due to its rapidly growing economy and population. UN-SDG 13 (considering this scenario) urges for prompt action in lowering greenhouse gas emissions and mitigating climate change (Montiel, Cuervo-Cazurra, Park, Antoln-López, & Husted, 2021; Porter, Tuertscher, & Huysman, 2020).
According to the International Energy Agency's (IEA) Global CO2 emissions from fuel combustion report for 2020, the transportation sector accounted for about 24% of global energy-related CO2 emissions.
According to Wang et al (2018), electric vehicles two-wheeler (EVs) is one of the most promising environmentally beneficial technologies against pollution and energy demand from the transportation industry. Two programmes have been started by the Indian government to encourage the use of electric vehicles (EVs) there. By 2030, the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan's (NEMMP) goal is for all vehicles to be electric. Through the Faster acceptance and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME) India strategy, EV consumer acceptance is encouraged, and India becomes a hub for EV production.
The market share of electric vehicles (EVs) in India is still relatively low, but it is growing rapidly. According to a report by the Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV), EV sales in India increased by 20% in the fiscal year 2020-21, with a total of 2,36,802 units sold (SMEV, 2021).
Figure 1. Automobile domestic sales trend
Practically speaking, as illustrated in Figure 1 (Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles, 2021), sales of electric four-wheelers (E4W) have remained mostly flat while the rise of the EV industry in India is being driven by electric two-wheelers (E2W). In 2022–2023, electric two-wheeler sales accounted for roughly 62% of all EV sales up from 55 percent in 2021–2022 period. This rise has been influenced by elements such as rising gasoline prices, environmental consciousness, and government subsidies.
Despite their significant presence in the transportation industry, research on the deployment of two-wheeler electric vehicles (EVs) in developing nations like India is lacking. While some studies discuss EV adoption difficulties in India, additional research is required to fully understand the opportunities and problems unique to two-wheeler EVs. The goal of this study is to investigate how socioeconomic characteristics and government incentives affect the uptake of electric two-wheelers among Indian customers.