On green drive, Himachal CM opts for electric SUV
To drive home an environment-friendly message, Himachal Pradesh chief minister Jai Ram Thakur will be using an electric sports utility vehicle (SUV) for his travels.
The vehicle, a Hyundai Kona, which cost the state transport department Rs 23.7 lakh, was gifted to Thakur and he drove it from his residence, Oakover, to the state secretariat on Wednesday.
Transport deputy general manager HK Gupta said that the vehicle can cover 452 km on a full charge of batteries. Though the car requires a maximum of six hours to get fully charged, it has been designed to get set for running in 57 minutes. Charging is economical at 30 paise an hour.
During the assembly’s monsoon session, the department introduced electric buses in Shimla. It runs an electric bus service for patients between Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, and Sanjauli.
It was during the session that transport minister Govind Singh Thakur announced to gift the electric SUV to the chief minister.
“If the vehicle is a success in the hills, more such electrical vehicles will be added in the fleet of ministers,” said an official in the general administration department.