Tesla's entry in India further delayed, facing "a lot of challenges" tweets Elon Musk

In response to a tweet, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said he had to work through "a lot of challenges" to start Tesla electric vehicle production in India.

Elon Musk with Narendra Modi (File pic)

Tesla had plans to enter the Indian market by 2019, but it seems that still, they are a long way from achieving the goal. Recently, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in a tweet, "Still working through a lot of challenges with the government." The tweet from Musk came in response to a tweet from a person who inquired about Tesla's entry into India. The delay in Tesla's launch in India is a result of a slight disagreement between the central government and the electric car makers.

Still working through a lot of challenges with the government — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 12, 2022

The stalemate situation between the two is because of a country's import duty of around a hundred per cent. In 2020, Musk announced plans to open the production of Tesla electric vehicles in India and a subsidiary Tesla India Motors and Energy Private Limited was established in Bengaluru in Southwest India. Musk said he was ready to build a Tesla factory in India if the country reduced the cost of importing electric vehicles. 

However, the government has criticised Elon Musk's tweet. Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways said that if Tesla assemble and sell the vehicles in India, they can reap the benefits of the PLI scheme for automobiles and specifically electric vehicles.

Tesla's request for tax cut has received support from Hyundai Motor India Ltd. and Volkswagen AG's India unit. However, Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd. requested import tariff reviews and lower domestic levies.