Online cab aggregator Ola and Mahindra have jointly partnered with the Government of India to build the country s first electric mass mobility ecosystem. This project will bring electric vehicles like e-buses, e-cabs, e-rickshaws and e-autos together on a single platform, the Ola app. The pilot project is set to take place in Nagpur and has been inaugurated by Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister of Maharashtra. Also Read - Facebook for Android will soon get dark mode and coronavirus tracking feature

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Nagpur citizens will be the first to avail of this facility and book these vehicles from the Ola app. The pilot project comprises of a strong 200 fleet of vehicles. Of these, there would be 100 new Mahindra e2o Plus electric cars. The upgraded version of the e2o, the e2o Plus comes with 4 doors. Mahindra s city smart car is enabled with a smartphone app which can be used to access features like switching the AC on /off, locking and unlocking the car and even turn on the SOS Revive option in the car. In addition, the fleet will also comprise of vehicles from companies like Tata Motors, Kinetic, BYD, and TVS.

The inaugural session of this project took place at the Nagpur Airport Complex. Ola also unveiled its electric charging station the first of its kind. The charging station is located within the airport complex and will be used to charge its new electric fleet of vehicles. Ola has also installed over 50 charging stations across four strategic locations in Nagpur. Ola is said to have invested up to 50 crore for this electric vehicles project. The investment will further be taken forward to train and educate driver partners on the maintenance and use of in-car technology of the electric vehicles with Mahindra.

The inaugural session of this project witnessed more dignitaries like Nitin Gadkari and Joint Secretary of MoRTH Abhay Damle. From the Transport Government of Maharashtra, the Transport Minister Diwakar Raote, Principal Secretary Manoj Saunik and Additional Commissioner Satish Sahasrabudhe were present at the event. Speaking on the occassion, Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis said that the Maharashtra government has waived off VAT, road tax, and registration for all electric vehicles in the state. ALSO READ: Ola cabs partners Maharashtra government to promote tourism

He added, The state of Maharashtra is geared towards driving positive change for collective improvement of the society we live in, and we welcome and encourage such initiatives. We are extremely proud of the commitment corporations like Ola, Mahindra and others are working towards building sustainable transportation for all.

Ola s partnership with Mahindra has brought forward the use of electric vehicles commercially in India. Electric vehicles in India are still at a nascent stage and this project is a push forward the government s project of all-electric car by 2030. Ola looks forward to working on this project with the government s support to bring its electric car fleet to more cities in India. ALSO READ: ISRO tests eco-friendly technology to move closer to India s all-electric car vision by 2030