February 2020 – Wise

E-lectric and a lot of Cloud

India’s thirst for EVs (Electric Vehicles) received a major push in India’s Union Budget of 2019-20, and is expected to improve further in the budget of 2020-21 and thenceforth.

In March 2019, India’s union cabinet approved setting up of a National Mission on Transformative Mobility and Battery Storage, to drive clean, connected, shared, sustainable and holistic mobility initiatives. The proposed capacity target for lithium-ion battery-manufacturing base has been raised to 50GW from 40GW. The government is in the process of tendering for set up of 50GW battery manufacturing base at around US$50 billion investment.

While this is good news, there is total ignorance among majority of general public.

“At Mahindra AGM our shareholders asked us when are we getting into EVs. If after producing and selling EVs for 9 yrs, after having 5,000 eCars on the Indian roads, after 135 M eMiles behind us if our share holders don’t know that we make EVs, we have failed in our communication,” said Dr Pawan Goenka, the head of Mahindra, a day after the recent AGM in Mumbai. Mahindra have the most diversified indigenous range of e-auto products in India currently – the sedan E-verito, e-Supro minivan and E2O+ Hatch as also 3-Ws Treo and e-Alfa mini. Mahindra is setting up an advanced Lithium-ion battery plant along with the Korean LG Chem at Chakan near Pune – half-a-million modules per year.

Indian rules say that assembling cells within the geography of the country is enough to quality under Make-in-India. This means, the cells are imported – largely from Taiwan and China, and doesn’t have the competence to manufacture the cells itself. The recent COVID-19 situation and resultant lockdown in China has led to severe shortages of various types of rawmaterial used in a wide variety of industries, including EVs – prompting Mahindra to state that BSVI roll-out would be delayed, while mobile companies said they could shut for at least a 10 days – if things don’t improve at China and components supply is hampered further.

In an already weak manufacturing situation (Auto sales down ~40% in 2019-20), this is the last thing that industries had expected / wanted. But viruses have a mind of their own, and our minds are clouded. This was an opportunity for Indian industries to step-up and grab their share of the global market. Well, elephants seldom dance, let alone fly, and panic when in stress; Elephants are cute and majestic, though!

A lithium-ion battery accounts for 40% of the total cost of an EV. Toshiba-Denso-Suzuki JV has invested in a 1,100 cr lant in Gujarat for Li-ion batteries. Panasonic plans to step into this field as well. an EV battery manufacturing set-up could cost ~200 crores, which only deep pockets can afford. While collaboration could mitigate the technology development costs, everyone prefers to climb the wall to discover the struggle for themselves. Mahindra on its part is willing to find synergies with Tata Motors.

The recent Auto Expo 2020 at Noida in Feb, threw up 18 EV startups and their wares – autos, mopeds, bikes, scooters and a Bus. Of all, only one was Arai certified, the rest being concepts. AutoExpo 2019 had 11 startups, but majority of them haven’t seen significant growth nor have captured the market.

Large Auto companies – Mahindra, Tata motors, Maruti and Volkswagen too displayed their current options and concepts; remains to be seen how these get accepted by the public. In the period Apr-Dec 2019, only 1,554 4W EVs were sold! A host of launches were made by Kia, Tata and Hyundai, and their marketability remains to be seen, in the tepid waters. The fate of EVs from BMW, Mercedes is anybody’s guess. An improvement in the EV market was the jump in sales – 2017: 56,000 EVs, 2018-19: 759,000 EVs – mostly in 2W and 3W. The crux is – individual 4W-EVs sales is not forging ahead as anticipated and the current numbers are largely of call-rider companies purchases. Experts believe that current crop of 4W-EVs are at best a second car, and the first time buyer or first choice of car still will continue to be powered by fossil-fuel. How many can afford a Tesla Electric in the world?

Hero Electric (11 2W-EV models!) is gingerly testing waters; Bajaj went retro and announced an Electric version of the legendary Chetak (remember Buland Bharat ki Buland Tasveer? but how Hamara will this Bajaj be, with Rajiv hating the e-word). Elsewhere in the globe, Sony built a Vision-S car; so why not our own Micromax build a Revolt bike? Should big boys have all the e-fun?! Yulu is a flimsy moped, but it is in shared rides cocoon with limited mobility, I was petrified riding one for 300-mtrs at a stretch. Then there are the Okinawa, Battre, Ultraviolette, Tork… all e-attempting. There is a star, though, in Ather, powered by ex-Flipkart’s Bansals, Tiger Global and Hero Motocorp, which seems to be leading in the 2-W market for now, and intends to invest Rs 635 crores for a manufacturing plant at Hosur, which will double their current capacity of 40,000 2-W-EVs pa., and have reportedly invested in putting-up 40 public charge stations in Bangalore and Chennai.

Given the cost of charging infrastructure, Govt needs to step in to bolster this critical public infra countrywide (2,346 charging stations in 24 states is a slow start), if it is serious about 2030 deadline (hope it doesn’t peter out like the recent Plastics Ban fiasco!). At present, at SMEV there are 28 EV manufacturing companies in their fold while the rest of the total 72 members are into components alone. https://www.smev.in/smev-members. Can a startup rise to manufacture charging stations in India? An exuberant elephant calf, perhaps?

How green is my power? If fossil fuels are responsible for increase of CO2 in the atmosphere, Coal is a co-culprit with 40% contribution. Besides, when burnt, coal produces pollutants like sulfurdioxide, mercury, and particulate matter which result in acid-rain and damage the environment. Not to mention serious ecological damage done to the forests due to mining and transport. In India, 62.80% is generated by thermal plants, Hydro and Nuclear provide 12 and 2% respectively, while Renewable power is a healthy 23%.

Alternate energy: When we talk of energy sources like Hydel, Solar, Wind and Nuclear energy, they seem to be the best solution. But are they? It is laudable that UN sees India leading the global thrust, but it still doesn’t feature in the list of top 10 countries that are ready to transition into a secure, sustainable, reliable, and affordable alternate energy future. According to WEF, 81% of global energy systems is still dependent on fossil fuels and so is India. Solar panels have a life of say, 25 years, with diminishing performance and degrading of panels; then what? What to do with these panels… manufacturers like Tata Solar, Vikram, Emvee, have no clue, yet. US and Europe are in planning stages with pilots running. Though the panel (made of glass, silicon, plastic and aluminium) is recyclable, it is difficult to extract the web of metals to reuse, and could end up in landfills; but then – where is so much of land? Wind Farms are falling out of favour – with erratic wind patterns, poor generation and transmission losses, maintenance glitches, high initial infra cost coupled with mounting financial burden, not to mention damage to sensitive eco-system in remote areas (dizzy wild animals, dying bees, et al). EV’s batteries are made largely of Lithum which is again a mined RE metal with limited resources worldwide.

Clear Policies: Indian Govt specifically needs to focus on reducing imported parts for EVs if the local industry (already reeling on slackened auto market) has to find their mojo once again. Incentivising home-production and increasing duty on imported CBUs, parts and components, will be a good start – given that EVs require ~800 lesser auto-components than conventional ones (a survey in Germany found out and that it could also mean a million-job-loss). Increasing common charging points in public spaces, a specific policy for end of life battery cases and solar panels that cannot be recycled must be put in place forthwith, or else we will be filling the Earth with more toxins and rare-earth substances in an effort to save fossil fuels!

Alternate Green energy: ET Energy quotes TERI in a recent article, that India’s 18 sq km surface area of reservoirs has the potential to generate 280 GW of solar power, using floatovoltaics; this report was tabled at the recent World Sustainable Development Summit 2020; given the high costs of land acquisition this seems to be an alternate to generating green-energy. China, Japan and South Korea are said to be leaders of this floating-power-generation technology, while UK has the world’s largest farm. Floating Solar Farms, of 50 MW to shortly take-off in Kerala by National Hydro Power Corpn; but before rushing to establish this unique tech, must consider possible ecological damage to the biodiversity and aquatic life. In a study of one such farm by Kyocera TCL Solar LLC at the Yamakura Dam reservoir in Japan found reduction in algal blooms reduced evaporation of water, and the blocking of UV rays, while being difficult to maintain and prone to damage, but on the plus side, the panels generated more power being cooled by the waters below.

All in all, a holistic approach is necessary to:

Conserve Fossil fuels, reduce dependency
Limit environment pollution, preserve natural resources, restore ecology
Devise concrete plans for alternate energy sources
Clear road-map for Electric vehicles and public e-Charging infra
Wean away from external dependence for parts and components
Allow for healthy co-existence of conventional and EVs
Promote clean affordable energy
Policies for recycling end-of-life products

Views are own; info from various sources including domestic and international Media, MNRE, Govts, UN, UNEP, WEF

Poems, Parrots and Palash

Truly, nature ‘spring’s to life in all its glory – a riot of colours, a heady blend of fragrances, chirping of birds, humming of bees, frolicking butterflies… Gurudev couldn’t be wrong, it is truly intoxicating!

Ektuku choya lage, ektuku kothai shuni

Tayee diye mone mone rochi mamo phaalguni.

Kichchu palasher nesha, kichu ba chapaye mesha

Tayee deeye shure shure range rashe jaal buni

A light touch do I feel, a few words do I hear

And I conjure in my mind spring’s full moon

The intoxicating red of ‘palash’, blend with fragrance of champa

I weave with music into a net of colour and fervour

– Rabindranath Tagore *

Driving through India’s dry deciduous forests during this season, across the Deccan (Telangana-Marathwada), the Western ghats of Sahyadris, Aravallis at NCR, Rajasthan and Gujarat, and gardens of Bangalore, an unmistakably common view of scarlet horizons. n bloom now, the forests and many urban gardens appear to be afire! The flowers of Palash and Spathodea splashing scarlet across the horizon…

Here, a Purple Sunbird is about to take a sip off the flowers nectar; birds like this one and are the major pollinators of the Palash, including the Indian Rose-ringed Parakeets.

Vasant rtu starts shortly after Makara Sankranti, the harvest festival and the movement of Sun God into the zodiac sign of Capricorn. After the winter solstice in December, the days become longer, sun starts shining brighter and winter chill is on the wane. Hindu Gods are awake now in Uttarayan, and Vasant Panchami is celebrated heralding the official arrival of spring, across India.

Flame of the Forest, Tesu/Dhak (Hindi) Muttuga (Kannada), Moduga (Telugu) is the state flower of Jharkhand (literally meaning-an area of trees!) and Madhya Pradesh. Historically, Palash forests are said to cover much of the doab between the Ganga and Yamuna rivers, central and western India; these were cleared for farming in early 19^th century, for East India Company’s increasing tax demands on the farmers. It’s variously used for timber, resin, medicine, and dye.

As Latin is common in Botany, its referred to in as frondosa (leafy) monosperma (single seed) and Butea, after John Stuart (3^rd Earl of Bute, PM of Britain 1762-3), finally named Butea monosperma. Two other colours of this flower occur – white and cream-yellowish – which are quite uncommon.

The medium-sized (15m), fast growing, long living native Indian tree, needs little water, can tolerate drought, frost and saline soils; It has a greyish bark, crooked stem and irregular branches. The wood is white and soft, being water-durable used for well-curbs and water scoops and boats; produces good quality charcoal. Trifoliate (3-leaf-cluster, believed yo be the Holy Trinity), its large leathery leaves are unfit for fodder, but are put to good use as food plates and cups. Bengal Kino is a red-gum extruded from the tree (infested with lac-insect produces shellac) used in tanning leather and polishes, and as an astringent in pharma. Orange-colour obtained from flowers used to dye cotton fabric (of monks traditionally). Flowers are collected, soaked and the pale coloured water is used to play Holi in North India; now it is making a comeback as organic colour in powder form. Its wood is also used to make implements for sacrificial fires for initiating the fire itself. Leaves are also used to roll bidi.

Quite modest all year round, Jan~Mar is when it comes alive – in bright crimson! Sunbirds of all colours and sizes, Parrots, Mynas, Squirrels blearily running up and down the branches in gay intoxication, butterflies and bees buzzing around – pictures a whole ecosystem that’s thriving on the tree during this season! Trees like Palash, Semal, Coral tree, that rely mostly on birds for pollination are early in the flowering season, have large reddish flowers and mostly do not compete for attention; even if climate plays-up as in recent times, there’s so much in abundance that it hardly makes a difference. The trees that flower in purple, blue, yellow, pink and other colours follow and rely largely on insects like bees and butterflies for pollination, of course small birds.

Kimshuka (Sanskrit), means like a parrot, it is mentioned in various literary works and puranic legends, and as early as 4 BCE by Panini; many parts of the tree are used in vedic rituals and sacrificial fires and is considered sacred for Pointiffs. In Ayurveda, the tree is referred to as Brahmavrksha. The tree and its flower have numerous medicinal properties. For eg. Bathing in water boiled with the flowers can cure skins problems. Various parts are used for stomach ailments, The reddish-orange flowers are offered to Kali and to Shiva.

The tree is referred to as “Susravas”, meaning a tree with the best hearing ability. In Vedas it is mentioned, “DevAvai brahmannavadanta tatparna upAsruNot susravAvai namh”, meaning: A student should be able to grasp the teachings of the Guru in the Gurukula, just as the Palasa tree.

Palash is beneficial to ecology. It reduces about 75% of dust from one cubic litre of the atmosphere. It also acts as an air conditioner by liberating 10-20 litres of water per day per tree of average height through transpiration. A fully grown tree of 15+ yrs is a good carbon-sink and since it sheds leaves adds to biomass that enriches and balances the soil composition. It is also used to stabilize field bunds (said to hold water and so not cut-down)? and make saline soils suitable for other trees! Palash also can aspire 10~20 liters of water daily into the atmosphere, and so its environs are cool.

Tribal wealth: Tribals, the natives of India’s jungles place a lot of importance to nature, especially trees and water. in Jharkhand, Santhal and Sabar tribes value Palash immensely. Santhals make ropes of its fibrous back and roots and in making boats. In Manipur, a piece of wood is buried along with the dead, or if the body isn’t available, a log of the wood is buried/burnt! Tribal areas of Maharashtra and adjoining Chhattisgarh, value Palash as the best coolant, with nutritional and healing qualities; the tradition of consuming flower’s extract is forgotten, few older people still reminisce. During summer, cold infusion of the dried flower is consumed as sherbet, while a tea prepared with dried flower and leaves can be consumed all year long (beneficial for urinary and menstrual problems). Fresh leaves are placed on the head and secured to avoid sun-stroke.

Lakhs from Lac: Tribals in MP’s Shahdol dist were taught to harvest Lac from the Palash trees, which then grew in popularity and has revived as a popular farming practice. Historically, the princely state of Rewa, which gave refuge to Mughal king Akbar as a kid, was the first to establish India’s a Shellac factory, in 1903 by Raja Gulab Singh at Umaria in Shahdol district. Now, since its revival, Jharkhand and MP vie with eachother in its produce. India is the global leader in exporting Lac (used widely in wood polish, ornaments like bangles, ammunition, airplanes, perfumes and little toys). commercially, a kg of Lac costs Rs. 800, and yearly revenues rustle up to US$43.3 million in 2018-19! 90% of Lac resin is produced from Palash, Ber and Kusum trees, as well as blackseed grass.

‘Dhak ke teen paat’ in Hindi refers to its trifoliate (3) leaves cluster. A Marathi proverb translated means – one will not become poor as long as the tree is alive – referring to its immense value in native knowledge.

In literature: Many poets were inspired by the Palash, and referred to it as a symbol of love from Valmiki to Jayadev to Tagore; Chanakya, referred to beauty and lack of fragrance says:

रूपयौवनसम्पन्ना विशालकुलसम्भवाः। विद्याहीना न शोभन्ते निर्गन्धाः किंशुका यथा॥

Though people be endowed with beauty and youth and born in noble families, yet without education they are like the Palas flower devoid of fragrance

Shantiniketan, where Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore spent a lot of his childhood, had a many flowering trees, so unsurprisingly, ~60 trees are mentioned in his poems; of them, Palash in ‘Ore Grihobashi’ written in 1931 exhorts people to enjoy the Spring season – an excerpt:

Ore grihobaasi! Khol, daar khol, laaglo je dol.	Oh people! Open the doors! There is a spring stir!
Sthale jale banotale laaglo je dol!	On soil, in water and the forests, there is a mad, spring stir!
Daar khol, daar khol!	Open the doors!
Ranga haasi rashi rashi ashoke palaashe,	A ruddy, laughter in abundance, amongst the ashok and palash flowers.
Ranga nesha meghe mesha probhato-aakashe, Nobino paatay laage ranga hillol.	An intoxication amidst the clouds of the morning sky With new leaves leaving a bright splendor,
Daar khol, daar khol!	Open the doors, open the doors!

The song is still played, during Vasanta-utsav, in Bangla regions, and esp Viswabharati Univ. established by Tagore.

Palashi is a village in east of West Bengal on the banks of Hooghly (Bhagirathi tributary) river, named due to a large grove of the Palash trees. The legendary Battle of Plassey (anglicized of Palashi) occurred near this village on June 23, 1757, where Nawab Siraj-ud-daulah lost to the treachery of Mir Jaffar and Robert Clive’s army of British East India Company – paving the way for their Empire and to rule India for the next 190 years.

Maharshi Valmiki in his epic, The Ramayana, Rama converses with Sita

AdIptAniva vaidehi sarvataH puShpitAnnagAn .
svaiH puShpaiH kiMshukAnpashya mAlinaH shishirAtyaye

O Sita, behold the Kimshuka trees, with their brilliant flowers blossoming all over as if they are blazing up this winter!

From setting fire to forests, to hearts, and to sacrificial havis, from resembling the blood of Rama, Lakshamana and Indrajit, to the soulless beauty dyeing saints’ clothes, to mirthful colours of holi, to parrots and poets, from medicines to pleasing the moon, Palash has appealed variously with intensity since time immemorial.

This brilliant tree must furrow back into our gardens, into the urban landscape, rather than being relegated to folklore.

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