Another PURE EV branded electric scooter has caught fire in Telangana. This, as a matter of fact, is the fourth PURE EV electric scooter to go up in flames. A YouTube video of the same was uploaded on the platform about 24 hours ago.
Start-ups, brands, and everyone included in the electric vehicle sector might find it hard to advocate for EVs anymore, as more than a dozen electric scooters have caught fire in India within a few weeks.
This incident, interestingly, follows NITI Aayog's voluntary recall advice to electric vehicle brands and OEMs. Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, had recently mentioned that brands recalling electric scooters voluntarily for checkups would help the industry instil confidence in end-consumers.
Though electric scooters from OEMs including Okinawa, OLA, Jitendra EV, and PURE EV have caught fire in the recent past, only Okinawa has recalled some of the electric scooters for testing. There seems to be no step taken from the other brands.
Most of the electric vehicle experts had earlier pointed out battery and battery management system issues as the main reasons behind EVs catching fire. It is also to be noted that this is just the start of summer in India, and a lag in quality checks might lead to more EVs catching fire. Battery cells originating from China have also been blamed for EV fires.
India, in FY 2022, sold a total of 429,217 electric vehicles. The majority, 231,338 of these, were two-wheelers, followed by 177,874 units of electric three-wheelers.