The Toyota Mirai car, the first of its kind in the country, is part of a pilot project to study its effectiveness on Indian roads and climatic conditions
Union Road Transport & Highways minister Nitin Gadkari rides in a green hydrogen-powered car to Parliament. Photo ANI
Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday arrived in a green hydrogen-powered car to Parliament, pushing for alternative fuel vehicles.
The Toyota Mirai car, the first of its kind in the country, is part of a pilot project to study its effectiveness on Indian roads and climatic conditions.
“To become Atmanirbhar, we’ve introduced green hydrogen which is generated from water,” Gadkari said to ANI outside the Parliament. “Now, manufacturing of green hydrogen will begin in the country, imports will be curbed and new employment opportunities will be created,” he added.
The car can reportedly cover 600 kilometres on a full tank, which brings down the cost of travel to just Rs 2 per kilometre. It also apparently takes just five minutes to fill the fuel tank of the vehicle, reports NDTV.
Gadkari had earlier this month launched this car, India’s first hydrogen-based advanced “Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV)” – Toyota Mirai. He had also shared a video of how green hydrogen can power a car. At the launch, he had said, “Green hydrogen was an efficient, eco-friendly and sustainable energy pathway to make India energy self-reliant.”
Gadkari’s support for green transition in fuel is known to all as he had said earlier that rapid strides in green fuel technology will reduce the cost of electric vehicles (EVs), bringing them on a par with petrol-run vehicles in two years’ time.
Meanwhile, fuel prices were hiked again on Wednesday for the eighth time in the last nine days.
Petrol and diesel prices were on Wednesday hiked by 80 paise a litre each, taking the total increase in rates in the last nine days to Rs 5.60 per litre.
Petrol in Delhi will now cost Rs 101.01 per litre as against Rs 100.21 previously while diesel rates have gone up from Rs 91.47 per litre to Rs 92.27 according to a price notification of state fuel retailers.
Rates have been increased across the country and vary from state to state depending upon the incidence of local taxation.
This is the ninth increase in prices since the ending of a four-and-half-month long hiatus in rate revision on 22 March. On the first four occasions, prices were increased by 80 paise a litre – the steepest single-day rise since the daily price revision was introduced in June 2017. On the following days, petrol price went up by 50 paise and 30 paise a litre while diesel rose by 55 paise and 35 paise a litre. Petrol price was on Tuesday hiked by 80 paise a litre and diesel by 70 paise.
In all, petrol and diesel prices have gone up by Rs 5.60 per litre each.
With input from agencies
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