Exploring multi-level interactions in electric vehicle niche evolution in India.

The electric two-wheeler (E2W) niche in India has undergone substantial changes over the years due to a combination of global and local factors such as battery technology developments, consistent policy support, increasing fuel prices, and favourable consumer perception of E2Ws. As markets for new technologies grow, the nature and intensity of their interactions with the broader socio-political milieu change, which necessitates recalibration of governance strategies for their further growth. This paper employs the Multi-level perspective (MLP) approach to study the evolution of the E2W socio-technical system and finds that due to favourable developments, the E2W market is expanding and appears to be at the cusp of a significant transition. This provides a window of opportunity and to leverage this, the paper argues that the nature and scope of the policy support needs re-orientation from focusing only on supporting niche to also including regime destabilizing instruments in the policy toolkit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]