As explosions and fire accidents involving electric vehicles (EVs) were happening across the country, the government had to step in and create some procedures on battery certification and quality control. For, a DRDO investigation into the unfortunate fire accidents had found the EV companies to have cut corners and sourced inferior materials for the battery pack.
The government issued show cause notices to companies like Ola Electric, Okinawa, and PureEV whose vehicles were involved in the fire mishaps. The government also formed an expert panel to suggest standard operating procedure (SOP) on battery certification and quality control. The committee representations from the Visakhapatnam-based Naval Science & Technological Laboratory, the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru and an expert of advanced chemistry.
Now, an IANS report says that the committee will submit its report this month.
Govt panel recommendations: Testing centre on anvil
The reasons for fire may include manufacturing defects, external damage, or faults in the deployment in the battery management system, which could result in these batteries becoming a fire risk. In some cases, faulty charging could also have been a reason behind the fire.
Considering all this, the government is mulling a safety certification. The government committee report will lay down the rules to be eligible for the safety certification. The certificate will be provided only to vehicles that ensure safety and quality in the battery pack and other vital components. As has been made clear already, the group of experts will come out with the all-important SOP for battery quality certification
Further, the government will set up a nodal centre where all the EV makers have to send their battery samples to get certified. The fresh standards will focus on traceability of foreign suppliers of cells and battery components.
Meanwhile, the government is also awaiting the response to the show-cause notices it sent to EV manufacturers like Ola Electric, Okinawa Autotech and Pure EV, among others, warning them why a penal action should not be taken against them for delivering faulty electric two-wheelers to the public.
The EV makers were given time till the end of this month to respond in detail to the notices. Once the responses are in, the government will decide which penal action is to be taken, if any, against the EV makers at fault. That would be separate to the government panel recommendations on battery standardisation and certification.
- Amazon Prime Day 2022: Full details of all deals and offers
