3 months on, society awaits Chandigarh MC nod for 15 EV charging units

While the UT is striving to become a model sustainable city, the Chandigarh Renewable Energy and Science & Technology Promotion Society (CREST) has been awaiting the MC’s nod for the installation of 15 more charging stations for electric vehicles for the past three months. The UT Administration is aiming for 1.26 crore tonnes of carbon footprint reduction by 2030.

Keeping in view the growing number of electric vehicles, CREST has decided to expand its network of charging stations across the city. According to officials, a survey was conducted by the society in collaboration with the Municipal Corporation (MC) to identify six alternative and 15 new sites.

Subsequently, a letter was written to the MC to seek a final approval for the identified sites on December 3 last year. A reminder was sent on February 18, 2026, but the approval is still awaited, stated the officials.

Under the Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure (EVCI) initiative, CREST has installed EV charging stations at 36 locations along with 16 battery swapping stations (BSS) across Chandigarh. Out of these, 32 locations have fast chargers.

The officials stated that the MC had earlier accorded its approval to 39 sites, out of which charging stations were set up at 36. Three sites each under the MC and the Engineering Department were found unsuitable for installation of charging stations. Thus, six alternative sites were identified in a fresh survey for the charging stations.

On generation of revenue from the EV charging stations, the officials stated that revenue of nearly Rs 1 crore was earned from May 2024 to November 2025. Further, lease rent of nearly Rs 25.95 lakh was earned out which Rs 12.39 lakh has been deposited with the MC and the remaining of the lease rent would be released shortly.

The officials said the city had emerged as one of the leading regions in the country for electric vehicle adoption, driven by its progressive Electric Vehicle Policy, 2022. Through financial incentives, waiver of road tax and registration fees, and simplified digital processes, the Chandigarh Administration has encouraged citizens, commercial operators and fleet owners to shift towards electric mobility. So far, Rs 36.69 crore has been disbursed among 5,980 beneficiaries as electric vehicle incentive.

Also EV charging station incentive of Rs 1.95 crore has been given to 39 beneficiaries.

Recently, CREST has been conferred with the prestigious Most EV-Ready City — Policy & Infrastructure Leadership Award at the second National Mobility Awards Summit 2026 held in Hyderabad.

The award was presented to CREST for Chandigarh’s exemplary efforts in advancing electric mobility. Chandigarh has earlier bagged the Gold Award for Best Union Territory for EV – Overall at the Motoring World Green Mobility Awards-2025 held in Delhi.

CREST has been instrumental in implementing the city’s EV policy, promoting clean transportation and accelerating EV adoption across multiple segments.

So far, nearly 21,000 electric vehicles, including two-wheelers, three-wheelers, four-wheelers, commercial vehicles, have been registered in the city.