New Delhi: Delhi has emerged as the largest consumer of electricity at public charging stations (PCS), even though UP has the highest number of electric vehicles in the country.Between April and Nov 2025, the city consumed nearly 240 million units (MU), about one-fourth of the 993 MU of electricity used at PCS to charge electric vehicles, signifying high usage. As per the transport ministry’s Vahan dashboard, nearly 80 lakh electric vehicles (pure EVs and battery-operated vehicles) are registered in the country till date, of which just 4.8 lakh, or 6%, are in Delhi.While UP has 15.2 lakh electric vehicles, Maharashtra has 9.2 lakh and Karnataka 7.2 lakh. According to the latest EV charging station power consumption report published by Central Electricity Authority (CEA), Maharashtra consumed 227 MU (22.9%), Karnataka 138 MU (13.9%) and UP 131 MU (13.2%).Following a govt push for adoption of EVs to foster a cleaner environment and achieve its net-zero emissions goal by 2070, total EV sales in India crossed 2.3 million units in 2025, capturing nearly 8% of all new vehicle registrations, driven by strong growth in the two-wheeler, three-wheeler and passenger vehicle segments.With the rise in the number of EVs, monthly consumption between April and Nov increased by nearly 33% — from 108 MU to 143 MU. In the April-Nov 2024 period, 515 MU were consumed to charge EVs at public chargers, which increased by nearly 52% to 993 MU during the corresponding period in 2025.However, Delhi faces a significant EV charging point deficit, with 8,998 operational against a requirement of 36,177, as per the action plan submitted by govt to Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM).With the increase in the number of EVs in India, the report stated that the rise in power consumption at non-PCS points, including private home chargers, workplace chargers and slow and captive charging points, was also substantial. While the CEA sought segregated data from power distribution companies for PCS and non-PCS stations, only a few complied.In Nov, 3.5 MU were consumed in the BSES Rajdhani area (south and west Delhi), followed by 2.7 MU in BSES Yamuna (east and northeast Delhi) and 2.5 MU in the Paschimanchal Vidyut Vitran jurisdiction (western UP) to charge EVs.
