Blue body, white hood: Maharashtra government fixes colours for e-rickshaws

Earlier this month, the transport authority, chaired by transport secretary Ashish Kumar Singh, had approved a blue-white colour scheme for e-rickshaws.

Three years after the state government gave its nod to the registration of battery-operated eco-friendly electric rickshaws in Maharashtra, the State Transport Authority (STA) has decided on a new colour scheme for these vehicles.

Three years after the state government gave its nod to the registration of battery-operated eco-friendly electric rickshaws in Maharashtra, the State Transport Authority (STA) has decided on a new colour scheme for these vehicles. (Virendra Singh Gosain/HT PHOTO (Representative image))

Earlier this month, the transport authority, chaired by transport secretary Ashish Kumar Singh, had approved a blue-white colour scheme for e-rickshaws. As per the STA decision, the hood of the e-rickshaws will be painted white, while the remainder of the vehicle’s body will be blue.

The STA decision will be applicable to all e-rickshaws registered in the state.

“Till now, there was no specific colour scheme for e-rickshaws in the state,” said a senior official of the transport department.

He added that a state-owned company had requested them to decide on a colour scheme for e-rickshaws to be used for the feeder service to Metro stations in certain cities.

However, the STA decided to instead extend the colour scheme to all e-rickshaws.

In Maharashtra, regular auto-rickshaws have a black-and-yellow colour scheme, while those registered on the permits of women drivers have a salmon orange (aboli flower) colour scheme.

In August 2016, the government allowed registration of battery-powered e-rickshaws and e-carts in the state.

The state, however, did not permit these battery-operated vehicles in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), citing concerns regarding traffic and congestion as these eco-friendly vehicles run at slower speeds.

According to government policy, e-rickshaws and e-carts can only be registered in the commercial or transport category and will be allowed to ply only on certain roads or areas.