Tata, Mahindra EVs help reduce New Delhi pollution

New Delhi, capital of India, has one of the worst air pollution problems of any city in the world.

The smog is caused by a series of compounding issues, including fires used to clear fields and coal-fired power plants, together with the millions of fossil-fuel powered vehicles travelling across the city every day.

This is worsend by winter conditions that can cause a temperature inversion which traps a layer of pollution closer the ground.

Amazon and Tata will deploy 3,000 electric trucks in India (Photo: Tata Motors)

Under the Winter Action Plan, authorities in New Delhi have rolled out a series of measures to help address vehicle pollution, including a doubling of parking fees, fines for non-compliant vehicles and a mandated 50% work-from-home order for government and private offices.

There is also a move to try and reduce smog caused by delivery vehicles. In late October, Amazon and Tata Motors announced a collaboration that will see 3,000 electric trucks delivered to the retail giant’s delivery partners.

Many of these will be the Tata Ultra E.7, a truck model which features CCS2 fast charging, regenerative braking and a series of high-voltage safety systems.

With a launch timed to match the busy festive season, the trucks will be used as middle-mile transportation supporting package transfers. There are also plans to electrify the Delhi-Bengal-Chennai corridor, India’s busiest route that crosses seven states.

The launch comes after the introduction of Delhi’s 2026 EV Policy, which will give the first 1,000 privately-owned medium duty electric trucks registered in the first three months after the policy comes into effect unlimited access to city centres for a full 10 years – bypassing the ‘No Entry’ hours.

Mahindra Last Mile Mobility

Another OEM which has made moves to support uptake of electrified vehicles is Mahindra. The Mahindra Last Mile Mobility (MLMM) program has leveraged the company supply chain to help support greater sales of electric three-wheeler delivery vehicles.

Mahindra Zor Grand Range pickup (Photo: Mahindra)

Named as a finalist in The Earthshot Prize 2026, a global environmental awards program founded by HRH Prince William, the goal is to show that the company can deliver electric vehicles responsibly and profitably.

To date, Mahindra says that is has sold more than 400,000 electric last-mile delivery vehicles that have together stopped an estimated 180,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions from reaching the atmosphere.

These include the Mahindra Treo Zor and Zor Grand. These three-wheelers cargo vehicles use a 48 V system with 10.24 kWh li-ion batteries that power either an 8 kW or 12 kW motor. Single-charge range across the two can vary from 80 to 120 km. Maximum payload capacity is up to 500 kg.

In addition, the MLMM has related customer support initiatives including accident insurance and financial counselling.