Pune, May 6 (PTI) Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari on Friday said the number of electric vehicles in the country will go up to 3 crore in the next two years.

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Speaking at the launch of startup products incubated at Science and Technology Park here, Gadkari said India has the largest pool of young talent and there was need to encourage these innovative minds.

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"In the electric scooter segment, there are about 250 startups that are working right now and they have really made good scooters and all are heavily booked," said Gadkari.

"There are currently 12 lakh electric vehicles in the country. By December end, the number will go up to 40 lakh and in next two years, it will reach to 3 crore," he added.

He said he was happy the monopoly of big brands in the EV segment was being challenged by smaller ones due to the latter bringing in equally good products in the market.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)