Budget 2021 Expectations – This personal mobility solutions start-up eyes incentives on electric vehicles, GST reduction on batteries

The Coronavirus pandemic has brought a paradigm shift in the way people see mobility. While owning a vehicle could be an expensive proposition amid job and pay cuts, taking it on rent could be a way forward if one has to practice social distancing while commuting. There has been a “significant uptick” in the demand with a fundamental shift in consumers’ needs amid the pandemic, Anand Ayyadurai, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer at VOGO said.

“Safety is now a priority and people are more comfortable driving themselves rather than opting for public transport or driver dependent commute,” Ayyadurai said. People are now looking to rent for longer durations to experience benefits of personal ownership without buying a vehicle, he added.

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VOGO is a start-up operating in a sector which is still at a nascent stage in India. This two-wheeler rental company provides personal mobility solutions.  The Co-founder has a few demands for Budget 2021 to be presented on 1 February.

“The mobility sector will be majorly driven by electric vehicles as the world is moving towards greener and cleaner transit solutions,” Ayyadurai said. “We are hoping to see a reduction in GST on EV batteries from 18% to 5% along with the subsidies on all EVs including low-speed electric two-wheelers”, he added.

This will support manufacturers and service providers and reduce the overall cost of vehicle for consumers,” he further said.

VOGO, a tech-enabled self-ride two-wheeler rental service which was launched in 2016 by Anand Ayyadurai, Padmanabhan Balakrishnan and Sanchit Mittal – all three are alumni of IIT and IIM.

Lockdown was an opportunity for the company to modify its services to suit consumers’ commute patterns for the new normal. It introduced three services - VOGO Now, VOGO Keep and VOGO Flexi Keep for short duration commutes, longer term rentals up to 2 months and customised plans, respectively.

It is also providing home-drop two-wheeler delivery services to its customers at their doorstep.