Ola Electric will recall 1,441 of its electric scooter models after one caught fire.
A few weeks ago, one of the company’s scooters caught fire in India and prompted a government investigation into the incident.
Similar fires have also befallen scooters made by Indian status Okinawa and PureEV. The Indian government launched an investigation last month, forming a committee of experts to make recommendations.
Okinawa recalled more than 3,000 vehicles earlier this month.
“We will be conducting a detailed diagnostics and health check of the scooters in that specific batch and therefore are issuing a voluntary recall of 1,441 vehicles,” Ola Electric said in a statement on Sunday.
The company also said it supported an EV safety policy if one were to be implemented by the Indian government. However, it maintained that a preliminary assessment of the fire revealed the incident was an isolated one and that the recalls were a “pre-emptive measure.”
Indians rely on scooters to get around the country’s busy cities and the government wants electric scooters and motorbikes to make up 80% of total two-wheeler sales by the end of the decade.
Currently, electric mopeds and motorbikes account for around 2% of sales. However, the Modi administration is offering companies, including Ola Electric, huge incentives and subsidies to make EVs locally.
Ola Electric has been keen to take advantage of those subsidies but has been using the opportunity to help get Indian women into work, recently announcing that its Futurefactory will be entirely women-run. The site should support more than 10,000 workers at full capacity.
The S1 and S1 Pro scooters produced at the factory both start from Rs 99,999 or less than £1,000, are designed specifically to meet the needs and demands of Indian riders. A 46-mile range can be delivered from an 18-minute charge while smart features including geo-fencing and a 7-inch touchscreen should keep tech-savvy riders happy.
