Famous Tamil Youtuber Madan Gowri has tweeted tagging Elon Musk to launch Tesla cars in India as soon as possible. Elon Musk’s official Twitter account has replied to his tweet.
Dear @elonmusk please launch Tesla cars in India ASAP! 😍 pic.twitter.com/ohFieRzdGW
— Madan Gowri (@madan3) July 23, 2021
“We want to do so, but import duties are the highest in the world by far of any large country! Moreover, clean energy vehicles are treated the same as diesel or petrol, which does not seem entirely consistent with the climate goals of India”, replied Elon Musk.
I’m told import duties are extremely high (up to 100%), even for electric cars. This would make our cars unaffordable.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 1, 2019
This is not the first time where Elon Musk has replied to the tweets. He seems to reply to the tweets related to Tesla cars in India for the past few years.
For other countries, we pay in part for the local factory by selling cars there ahead of time. Also, gives a sense of demand. Current rules in India prevent that, but recent changes in sales tax give hope for future changes.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) August 1, 2019
Elon Musk calls for a drastic reduction in import duty on electric vehicles in India. It is said that Tesla Inc has written to Indian Ministries recently seeking a reduction in import duties.
“Tesla, which aims to begin sales in India this year has written to Indian Ministries and Niti Aayog seeking reduction of federal taxes on import of Tesla cars to 40% which would be more appropriate. This compares with the current rates of 60% for cars priced below 40,000 dollars and 100% for those priced above 40,000 dollars.
According to Tesla’s US website, the Model 3 Standard Range Plus is the only model that is priced below 40,000 dollars.
India’s Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari told Reuters in March that to ensure Tesla’s cost of production in India is comparatively lesser than that of China, India would be offering incentives provided it is manufactured locally”, as per the Business Today article dated 23rd July.
Links :
Tesla seeks cut in import duty in India, says will boost demand
Import Duties in India Will Make Tesla Cars ‘Unaffordable’, Says Elon Musk
