India’s EV Surge Offers Blueprint for G20’s Clean Industrial Shift

India’s rapid shift to electric vehicles (EVs) has become a model for how developing nations can transform their industrial sectors.

This is a lesson the B20 Industrial Transformation and Innovation Task Force says the G20 should take note of.

The task force, chaired by Toyota South Africa CEO Andrew Kirby, presented India’s experience as a blueprint for sustainable industrial renewal ahead of the G20 Summit, which South Africa will host in Johannesburg in November 2025.

India’s industrial policies have turned challenges into economic opportunities, with EV sales surpassing 1.5 million units in the 2023/24 financial year.

Comprehensive policy approach

India’s transformation wasn’t achieved through subsidies alone, but through comprehensive industrial policy that gave manufacturers certainty for strategic planning and investment decisions, the task force notes.

India’s approach delivered significant industrial transformation, including new employment opportunities and reduced dependence on imported oil, saving the country billions in foreign currency.

This approach also attracted large investments in clean technology manufacturing and assembly.

According to Hiten Parmar, executive director of The Electric Mission, India’s approach shows that each country must develop its own strategy on the transition to zero-emission vehicles. “India’s experience shows us exactly how a country with a strong automotive industry can make this transition work for industrial development and economic growth.”

(The Electric Mission specialises in market development for EVs, renewable energy, and battery storage in South Africa.)

India’s ‘dual pathway’ model

Central to this transformation were clear technical and performance standards, including fuel efficiency standards and fleet-wide performance benchmarks.

The dual-pathway model, allowing continued improvements in conventional vehicles while incentivising electric development, meant the auto sector could build new industrial capabilities in emerging technologies.

Complementary programmes such as FAME II (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles Phase 2) have also supported infrastructure and supply chain development, creating the conditions for sustained industrial growth.

(FAME II, launched in April 2019, was a programme designed to promote EVs in the country by offering subsidies to EV buyers and supporting charging infrastructure. It ended in 2024 and was replaced with the Electric Mobility Promotion Scheme.)

“India’s experience demonstrates how well-targeted demand and supply incentives, and infrastructure investments, can increase the adoption of clean technologies and support national policy to accelerate low carbon industrial transformation,” says Parmar.

Replicate India’s success 

The B20 task force argues that developing and emerging economies can replicate this success by adopting predictable policy frameworks, establishing performance-based standards, investing in industrial infrastructure, and supporting both demand- and supply-side incentives.

These actions, it says, would help nations build industrial resilience and capture opportunities in global clean-technology markets.

As South Africa prepares to assume the G20 presidency, the report urges policymakers to view the upcoming summit as a pivotal moment for advancing inclusive industrial growth.

“The choice facing G20 nations is clear: embrace industrial transformation that creates new economic opportunities and positions countries as leaders in emerging global markets, or risk being left behind in the new industrial era,” says Parmar.