Concerns in Supply Chain 

Having an effective, viable, and robust supply chain for EVs in India is not easy. The primary concerns here include: 

• Dependence on Imported Raw materials: Most of the critical raw materials needed for the EV battery lately have been brought into India substantially, including nickel, cobalt, and lithium. With that dependence, it brings the supply chain under the influence of fluctuations in price as well as geopolitics. Supply disruptions in a country with riches might cause inflation in cost, as well as schedule delays. 
• Infrastructure Deficit: A weakly set up logistics network and charging infrastructure can severely hinder the production and distribution of EV parts. In addition to being the only prerequisite for consumer adoption, a robust infrastructure also ensures that raw materials and finished goods are moving seamlessly throughout the supply chain. 

The key factors essential for this manufacturing transition to electric are: 

• Qualified workforce: They should be well-trained on the latest technology-related skills to participate in producing the battery, power electronics, and electrical drivetrains; hence, also needing concerted skills development, with Indian knowledge reserves in this category lagging a long way. 

• Environmental Issues: Raw material extraction and battery waste are environmental concerns for which solutions are needed and are sustainable in nature. However, while poor lithium-ion battery disposal results in hazardous waste, unregulated mining is a destroyer of the ecology. 

• Supply Chain Fragmentation: Another characteristic feature of the supply chain for the Indian EV, as a host of non-coordinative players have given it birth, with this making the supply chain dependent on inefficiency, delays, and cost overruns. 

Techniques to Build Resilient Supply Chain 

India should apply diversified approach with innovation, localization, and cooperation orientations to overcome challenges. 

• Promoting Localisation: A strong supply chain needs to look at reducing imports. Localisation can be promoted by using PLI programs for promoting domestic production of important parts such as battery, motor, and controllers. In addition to this, to further ensure that these raw materials are available, processing facilities for cobalt and lithium should be set up in India. 

• As part of localization, there is also a need for a tier-1, tier-2, and tier-3 supplier network to be developed at the local level to enable an ecosystem where suppliers work together. The government can create particular industrial clusters to produce EVs on its own and allow shared resources like testing facilities and R&D centers. 

• Infrastructure Upgrades: To enable wide-scale usage, investment in smart grid technologies and charging infrastructure would be required. Public-private partnerships may assist in expediting the rollout of charge stations both in urban and rural centers so that it can reach all sections of the population. Supply chain resilience would involve a strong logistics network to assist freight of raw materials and finished products in an uninterrupted manner. 

• Such promotion of circular economy methods may minimize the dependence on virgin raw materials, mitigate the environmental issues, and can take the form of recycling systems and battery reusing for electric vehicles. Policies relating to energy storage devices can further advance the supply chain by incorporating second-life usage of the batteries. Recycling into battery design by producers can be a closed loop that does not waste any resource. 

• Use of Technology: Solutions such as Internet of Things, blockchain, and artificial intelligence help in the improvement of supply chain operations, logistics optimization, and transparency. For instance, blockchain technology ensures ethical and sustainable operations with end-to-end visibility in procurement of raw materials. Predictive analytics through AI helps in improving control over inventory levels and predicting fluctuations in demand. 

• Only through collaboration between the government, business, and academia will the skills and capacity-building-trained workforce for dealing with the T&D of an EV manufacturing process and supply chain management be culminated. Efforts at filling the skill gap may be developing centres of excellence, vocational training programs, or adding on modules specific to EVs in the engineering curricula.