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Researchers, industry leaders, and experts from across the country came together for a stakeholders' meeting under the Mission for Advancement in High-impact Areas (MAHA) Electric Vehicle (EV) Mission.
According to the Ministry of Science and Technology, the event, held at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi on Monday, served as a platform for discussions on collaborative efforts to propel India's e-mobility initiatives forward. It aimed at facilitating the submission of proposals in response to the MAHA-EV call, one of the inaugural initiatives launched by the newly operational Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF). "We have launched this mission to support India's shift to sustainable mobility in line with national goals. The importance of e-mobility within our automobile sector cannot be overstated. This mission is designed to catalyse innovation and collaboration among stakeholders, ensuring India builds robust expertise in EV technology," said Professor Ajay K Sood, Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of India, at the meeting organised at Vigyan Bhawan to facilitate the submission of proposals in response to the call on MAHA-EV--one of the first calls of the newly operationalized Anusandhan National Research Foundation. Secretary, Department of Science and Technology and CEO, ANRF, Professor Abhay Karandikar, highlighted the ambitious goals of the MAHA-EV Mission. "We have initiated significant investments through ANRF, establishing a high-powered governing board to guide mission strategy. The MAHA-EV Mission aims to foster advancements in EV battery technology, power electronics, and charging infrastructure. We have opened the call for proposals in consortia mode to enable interdisciplinary research and development across institutions, research labs and industry," Professor Karandikar pointed out. The first call from ANRF on the MAHA-EV mission which aims to boost India's expertise in EV battery technology, strengthen R&D in power electronics, machines and drives and improve charging infrastructure, is designed to fast-track translational research, innovation and technological breakthroughs in this area of national priority and bring about global impact. The enthusiasm of the participants gathered at the stakeholder's meeting underlined India's commitment to sustainable transportation and to the development of indigenous R&D in electric mobility. The meeting served as an interactive platform, with over 300 participants representing academia, government agencies, and industry joining in person and through online mode. They interacted with the senior government officials to clear their doubts for preparing to submit their proposals for the current call under MAHA-EV Mission. Dr Shashi Bhushan Pandey, Program Coordinator of the EV Mission at ANRF stressed that fostering such partnerships would lead to substantial advancements in India's EV landscape. On the sidelines of this event, Prof. Abhay Karandikar, Secretary, DST unveiled three thematic R&D Roadmaps on Tropical EV Battery, Power Electronics, Machines and Drives and EV Charging Infrastructure, which were prepared by DST. Simultaneously, soft copy of these reports was also uploaded on DST Website. Earlier, DST published a White Paper on eMobility, which was followed by release of eMobility R&D Roadmap by PSA Office. The culmination of these two reports along with three thematic R&D Roadmaps resulted into creation of Mission for Advancement in High-impact Areas (MAHA): EV-Mission, which will be run by ANRF. The brainstorming meeting was also attended by Dr. Anita Gupta, Head, Climate, Energy and Sustainable Transport (CEST) and other senior DST and ANRF Officials. The MAHA-EV initiative aspires to elevate India's standing in the global EV sector and contribute to the development of competitive, sustainable electric mobility technologies. (ANI)
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