Delhi govt to add 7,000 EV charging stations, 2,000 buses this year to curb air pollution
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi government is planing to install around 7,000 new electric vehicle charging stations by the end of the year to promote clean mobility and boost EV adoption, officials said on Monday.
According to the officials, the initiative is part of a broader strategy to mitigate vehicular emissions, a primary driver of air pollution in the national capital. Alongside the charging infrastructure, the government is planing to strengthen public transport by expanding the bus fleet.
The existing EV policy will expire at the end of March. Officials said a revised policy is expected to finalised and notified by that deadline.
Under the proposed transport plant, the government has plans to add over 2000 buses by the end of 2026, the officials said.
In a recent high-level review meeting on air pollution control measures, authorities established a total requirement of 11,000 buses for the city. Delhi, currently operates 5,245 buses, including 3,377 electric buses.
"A month-wise action plan was shared with the officials. The target is to add 2,468 new buses this year. However, some old CNG buses may get phased out over the year, which the government has to factor in yet," a senior official said.
To support the transition to electric vehicles, the government's pollution control plan includes the addition of 7,000 charging stations across the city.
Official data shows that as of December, Delhi has 8,849 charging stations against a projected requirement of 36,150. This leaves a current deficit of 27,301 stations.
With the addition of 7,000 new charging stations, the total is expected to reach 15,849. These charging stations are situated at Rapid Rail and Delhi Metro stations and are installed by power distribution companies, the officials said.
The government is also working with the Delhi Traffic Police to address road congestion.
Traffic Police has identified 62 congestion hotspots and 215 specific remedial tasks. Of these, 83 tasks have been completed, while 46 have been deemed unfeasible due to ongoing infrastructure projects, redevelopment works, or lack of feasibility, the officials said.
Of the 86 pending tasks, 50 are scheduled to be completed within the next one to six months.
The government's web portal for licensing and onboarding vehicles by motor vehicles aggregators, delivery service providers and e-commerce entities has registered approximately 7 lakh vehicles since its launch in 2023, they added.
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Parents fear uncertainty after Karnataka govt rules out age limit relaxation for Class 1 admission
Bengaluru: The Karnataka government has ruled out any relaxation of the minimum age limit for admission to Class 1 beginning with the academic year 2026-27. Following the refusal, a group of parents continues to press for leniency.
Parents of children who fall under the age of six by a small margin on the cut-off date have met Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar and senior officials from the Department of School Education and Literacy to request an exemption. School Education and Literacy Minister Madhu Bangarappa said that the government will not change its decision, as reported by Deccan Herald.
According to the minister, children must be six years old by June 1 to be eligible for admission to Class 1. beginning with the 2026-27 academic year. He noted that the previous relaxation was a one-time measure that was clearly confined to the 2025-26 academic year.
“If such requests are entertained every year, it will never end. While granting relaxation last year, it was explicitly stated that it applied only to one academic year. From 2026-27 onwards, the rule will be strictly implemented,” Bangarappa was quoted by DH.
Parents argue that the rigid cut-off is affecting children who are short by a few days. One parent was quoted by DH as saying that his daughter would be 12 days short of completing six years on June 1. Such parents would be forced to repeat a year despite being academically ready. Others pointed out that children promoted from LKG to UKG during the 2025-26 academic year are now facing uncertainty over their transition to Class 1.
Few parents also recalled that earlier, admissions were allowed for children aged between five years and 10 months and six years. Parents saw it as a more practical approach, with children born in November and December being disproportionately affected.
The issue of age criterion goes back to a government order issued in July 2022. The order mandated six years as the minimum age for Class 1 admission. Parents of children already enrolled in pre-primary classes, protested against the order and the state deferred implementation, announcing that the rule would come into force from the 2025-26 academic year.
After renewed pressure, the government granted a one-year relaxation for 2025-26, citing the large number of students affected and in consultation with the State Education Policy Commission. While announcing the exemption, the minister had stated that no further concessions would be allowed.
