IIT Delhi’s clean air centre turns a classic car into an electric one

NEW DELHI: Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi’s, Centre of Excellence for Research on Clean Air (CERCA) launched an electric vehicle on Monday, a statement from the institute said.

The vehicle is the maiden initiative on electric mobility by CERCA, the academic think tank and research centre for clean air at IIT Delhi. A vintage 1948 model of the Volkswagen Beetle has been converted into an electric car.

While launching the Electric Beetle at the IIT campus, Ram Gopal Rao, director, of the institute emphasized on the need of eco-friendly vehicles to curb pollution, “It is high time to realize the damage already caused and bring a halt to this by shifting to more sustainable alternatives such as electric vehicles which are the right, and the most suitable substitute.”

Rao also lauded the efforts of CERCA for the initiative and for increasing awareness for faster adoption of electric vehicles.

Vintage to electric vehicles

Arun Duggal, founder of CERCA and a former IIT Delhi student said, “Electric Beetle is a symbolic action to demonstrate that we can take actions to eliminate air pollution in Delhi/NCR and in India by use of technology and innovation.”

“One of the most amicable answers to the problem of air pollution today is the transition to EVs which are considered 100 percent emission-free as they do not release any toxic gases into the environment which is already in a critical state in several parts of the country,” he further added.

The program was attended by several members of the Heritage motoring club of India.

Diljit Titus, secretary, Heritage Motoring Club of India, said “Converting a Classic to electric drive is a significant upgrade and a more environmentally friendly choice especially if the classic does not have an engine or has the wrong engine or otherwise can’t be used. Converting to electric gets better torque and also increases the life of the Classic.”

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