The All Assam Engineer’s Association (AAEA), while expressing concern over the recent controversies relating to Assam Power Distribution Company Limited’s (APDCL) notice to e-rickshaw owners for arranging separate (commercial) charging arrangements, urged the authority to establish charging stations for the benefit of battery run rickshaw pullers.

The forum of graduate engineers also insisted on powering the registered charging stations with solar plates.

The common e-rickshaws in India normally use Calcium Tubular Deep Cycle batteries, which can perform in the hot climatic condition for a longer period. The electricity operated rickshaws with 60v1000w motors can run up to 25 kilometer per hour with maximum load capacity of 600 kilograms.

Every energy efficient rickshaw may have five 12 vault (90 ampere-hours) batteries that need a 60v charger.

It may be mentioned that the APDCL with an aim to crack down on misuse of domestic electricity supply by the e-rickshaw owners recently asked them to apply for an additional electric vehicle charging category connection in their households.

The concerned authority also asked the consumers to take appropriate initiatives for charging their e-rickshaw batteries with the domestic power connections.

AAEA president Kailash Sarma, vice-president Nava J Thakuria and secretary Inamul Hai in a media statement said, “We raise the demand for opening of modernized e-rickshaw charging stations across Assam. The charging of batteries may take hours (otherwise the fast charging normally damages the batteries) and hence necessary arrangements (to check overcharging) should be taken in those charging stations.”