Tesla in India? Invitations pour in for Elon Musk from states

Elon Musk seems to be the talk of the town in India ever since he tweeted that he was “working through challenges with the Indian government” while working out how to bring his Tesla cars to the country.

The states have since been vying with each other on Twitter to invite Musk, the manufacturer of electric vehicles, to set up base.

The latest on Sunday was Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief Navjot Singh Sidhu who invited the tycoon to set up a Tesla unit in the state’s industrial hub of Ludhiana.

“I invite @elonmusk,” wrote Sidhu. “Punjab Model will create Ludhiana as a hub for electric vehicles and battery industry with time-bound single window clearance for investment that brings new technology to Punjab, create green jobs, walking path of environment preservation and sustainable development.”

Earlier on Sunday, Maharashtra water resources minister Jayant Patil had offered the Tesla CEO his state to set up a manufacturing unit.

In his tweet to Musk, Patil said: “Maharashtra is one of most progressive states in India. We will provide you all the necessary help from Maharashtra for you to get established in India.”

West Bengal’s minority affairs and madrasa education minister Md Ghulam Rabbani also asked Musk the Tesla maker to invest in his state as it has the “best” infrastructure.

On Friday, Telangana commerce minister KT Rama Rao had tweeted out an invitation in response to Musk’s reply to a Twitter user named Pranay Pathole who asked him about the company’s car launch in India.

Tesla has been looking to enter the Indian market and has sought relaxation in import taxes. In a letter to the road ministry, the company had stated that the effective import tariff of 110 per cent on vehicles with customs value above $40,000 is “prohibitive” for zero-emission vehicles.