Month: July 2025

Electric trucks are coming, but are we ready for the shift? 

Posted on by Samreen Dhingra

The trucking industry is the backbone of India’s economy, transporting over 70% of the country’s freight. But as India pushes toward cleaner mobility, the sector is at a turning point. While electric two-wheelers, three-wheelers, passenger cars, and light commercial vehicles are making inroads, electrifying medium and heavy-duty vehicles (MHDVs) presents a different challenge. These trucks cover long distances, carry heavy loads, and require a well-developed charging and servicing ecosystem—infrastructure that is still in its early stages.

Beyond infrastructure and technology, another critical question looms: How will the shift to electric freight vehicles (EFVs) impact the workforce? A transition of this scale doesn’t just affect vehicles; it affects people—drivers, mechanics, fleet operators, and thousands of workers in manufacturing and logistics. 

To gain deeper insight into the workforce impact, iFOREST conducted research with over 400 stakeholders across India, including truck drivers, fleet operators, repair and maintenance workers, automotive component manufacturers (ACMs), and electric truck OEMs. Our work in the medium and heavy-duty freight segment extends our ongoing efforts toward a Just Transition in the automobile sector. Here, we highlight key challenges in ensuring that workers—especially those in informal roles—are not left behind in the shift to greener technology. 

The freight industry in India remains highly informal across its entire value chain. Our analysis indicates that in the manufacturing sector, 30% of smaller and medium-sized ACMs, which constitute the majority of enterprises, will need to adapt to changing demand as engine assemblies, transmissions, exhaust systems, and radiator systems become less relevant. Additionally, the survey reveals that informal repair and maintenance technicians, who rely on generational knowledge, have a significant opportunity to transition into high-value EV servicing roles, provided they receive adequate skilling support. Similarly, in the end-of-life stage, battery recycling and sustainable disposal practices will open new avenues of employment for scrapping and recycling workers. 

Ensuring a just and inclusive transition is essential to protect thousands of workers from getting impacted. A Just Transition is not just about moving to cleaner technology but about ensuring that workers dependent on traditional industries are not abandoned in the process.  

The skilling gap: Who gets left behind? 

This transition will erase some jobs (engine and transmission technicians), transform others through reskilling, and create entirely new roles (EV charging operators and high-voltage specialists). But with the sector’s deep informality, the question remains: Who will take responsibility for reskilling a workforce that doesn’t even exist on formal records? Without intervention, thousands risk losing their livelihoods simply due to a lack of relevant skills. 

Our study shows that the traditional ICE medium and heavy-duty vehicle (MHDV) sector currently supports around 529 distinct job roles across manufacturing, service and repair, dealership, transport logistics and warehouse management, and end-of-life management. As diesel trucks are phased out, 64 roles will evolve or merge into new positions, and 93 will require structured reskilling. For instance, diesel mechanics can become EV powertrain specialists, and fuel station attendants can transition into charging station operators. The transition won’t just replace jobs; it will also create 71 entirely new roles, from battery recycling specialists to high-voltage system technicians—expanding the total job pool to 536. The biggest shake-up will hit manufacturing, where engine assembly jobs disappear in favor of EV powertrain and battery integration. Repair and logistics workers must adapt to software-driven diagnostics and digital fleet management, while end-of-life management will demand expertise in battery recycling and hazardous waste handling. 

The problem isn’t just that old jobs are disappearing—it’s that new jobs require a higher skill level. 

A closer examination of the National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF) levels shows that emerging job roles require higher NSQF levels, whereas many obsolete jobs fall within lower NSQF levels. Workers who relied on hands-on experience now need formal education and certifications—resources they often lack.  Another major roadblock is that most skilling programs require basic education, excluding many informal workers despite their industry expertise. They cannot enroll in training courses that would help them move into new jobs. Without targeted interventions, these workers risk being left behind, widening inequalities in the evolving job market. 

Leaving no one behind

During my research, a Noida-based truck driver working for IX Energy Pvt Ltd., a technology company building electric transport solutions, said, “I drove a diesel truck for 10 years, trained by my ustaad. When my boss bought an electric truck, I had no choice but to learn. After just a week of in-house training, I was driving comfortably. Since my job now requires advanced operations like digital literacy diagnosing issues is easier than before. My pay went up from ₹ 20,000 to ₹ 32,000 plus benefits”.  

Skilling is not just about preserving jobs—it’s key to ensuring electrification meets its sustainability goals. Meenu Sarawgi, Executive Vice President & Chief at ASDC, pointed out, “Even for diesel trucks, skilling courses are almost non-existent—people assume learning on the job is enough. Poor training harms vehicle efficiency. As electrification brings new opportunities, we must do it right from the start. Training workers in EV technology is the only way to achieve the efficiency these vehicles promise.” 

A Just Transition is not a choice; it is a necessity. If structured skilling programs are not implemented, the very people who have kept India’s freight sector running for decades risk being left behind. The responsibility lies with OEMs, policymakers, and industry leaders to ensure this transition prioritizes people, not just technology. If done right, electrification can open new doors while protecting livelihoods—but without action, it could deepen inequalities rather than bridge them. 

The road ahead is electric, but it must also be just. 

This study was undertaken in collaboration with C40 Cities and The Climate Pledge as part of the Laneshift programme. 

 

Samreen Dhingra is a senior research associate at iFOREST 

 

Virtue Signalling Doesn’t Control Pollution

Posted on by Chandra Bhushan

Public outrage has muted Delhi’s drive to push out old cars. Bigger problem is that clean air policies are fashioned without scientific insight or robust data. Some actually hurt the environment

Public backlash has forced Delhi govt to walk back from its initiative to impound ‘end of life’ vehicles. But before this, the sudden outrage over the directive to stop refuelling diesel vehicles older than 10 years and petrol vehicles older than 15 years was somewhat amusing. Many seemed to believe this was a new crackdown.

But these vehicles were banned in Delhi nearly seven years ago, on Oct 30, 2018, when govt began enforcing a Supreme Court backed order that prohibits such vehicles not just from operating, but even from being parked or present in the city. So, the fuel denial directive was merely an attempt to enforce an old order using a new method.

In fact, law-abiding citizens have been selling their older vehicles ever since the 2018 law. I sold my well-maintained 10 years old Bharat Stage IV diesel car (barely run for 100,000 km) in 2022. It went to a tour operator in Punjab at a bargain price so generous that he still sends me Diwali sweets.

Over the past seven years, lakhs of Delhiites have sold their vehicles to comply with the ban. Of course, the majority of these vehicles have not gone to scrap yards as intended; instead, they’ve been relocated to other parts of the country, polluting their environments instead.

So, why did Delhi govt decide to enforce the refuelling restriction seven years after banning these vehicles? Did the Commission for Air Quality Management have data showing that the original ban had been ineffective? No. There entire air quality action plan being enforced by Delhi govt and agencies like CAQM is bereft of data. There is no evidence showing the impact of vehicle ban on air quality, or even tracking the enforcement of the ban itself.

There is no formal vehicle deregistration system in Delhi. In effect, end-of-life vehicles are permanently technically ‘registered’ with the Regional Transport Office. Owners are expected to voluntarily deregister their vehicles – a process so tedious that few attempt it. This bureaucratic blind spot means govt has no reliable data on how many vehicles remain on Delhi’s roads, let alone how much pollution they continue to cause.

CAQM’s decision to block fuel sales, therefore, was not driven by scientific insight or robust data. Delhi has spent years creating the illusion of action without building the capacity to measure impact. Despite the relentless headlines on its air pollution, there is no data showing whether banning vehicles or halting construction during winters has improved air quality. We’re acting blindfolded, hoping that symbolic policies will solve real problems.

That brings us to the real question: does banning 10-year-old diesel and 15-year-old petrol vehicles help? Not much. Vehicles contribute less than 10% of Delhi’s PM2.5 emissions. Of that, the majority comes from two- and three-wheelers. But banning two-wheelers is a political hot potato and therefore difficult to enforce. That means cars (which contribute less than 5% to Delhi’s PM2.5 problem) are the main focus of the ban, even though the impact of banning cars on air quality would be minimal.

This is exactly why the much-hyped odd-even vehicle rationing scheme failed. It ignored the science of air pollution and tried to project political will through traffic gimmicks. Banning cars based on age and denying them fuel is another version of the same performative theatre.

Such policies do more harm than good to the environment. Prematurely disposing of vehicles, pushing people to buy new ones, boosts automobile sales and adds more vehicles to the road. In addition, every new vehicle carries a hidden environmental cost in terms of emissions from raw materials, manufacturing and logistics.

Rather than fixing arbitrary age limits, a sensible vehicle retirement policy would be based on fitness. Around the world, vehicles are allowed to operate as long as they pass periodic fitness checks, including emissions testing. A 15-year-old car that is well-maintained and meets pollution standards is less harmful than a new one, if we consider the environmental impact of a vehicle’s full life cycle.

But the problem is that India lacks the necessary infra to make this happen. There’s no robust inspection and certification system, no reliable pollution testing, and no systematic registration or deregistration process for vehicles. Nor do we have an effective network of end-of-life vehicle collection and recycling centres. If we’re serious about reducing vehicular pollution, we must invest in a credible and modern vehicle lifecycle management system.

To be clear, banning polluting vehicles is a good idea. Old, polluting vehicles must be phased out. But they must be banned through a structured, evidence-based, and environmentally sound policy regime, not ad hoc decisions. In the absence of systems, such bans serve more as virtue signalling than pollution control.

The air will not get cleaner because you make life harder for car owners. It will get cleaner when you treat clean air not as a slogan, but as a system – one that needs long-term, scientific, and institutional investment.

 

 

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