If you’re a fan of electric clean-energy automotive giant Tesla and want to get your hands on the steering wheel of their cars, your wait might be over. As reported by The Indian Express, Tesla will be making its way to India as early as next year.

Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways and the Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Nitin Gadkari was in a conversation with editors at the Indian Express Idea Exchange Program when he confirmed that Tesla will begin its operations in India next year.

During the conversation, Gadkari also said that so far many Indian companies have been working on electric cars that are on the affordable end but technically as advanced as the cars offered by Tesla. Speaking to Indian Express, Nitin Gadkari also underlined the push for electric cars in India.

The minister also said that Tesla will begin its operations with sales first and then go into the assembly and manufacturing side of things based on the Indian market’s response to the cars.

Earlier, Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk also hinted at Tesla venturing into the Indian markets on Twitter. Musk reacted to Tesla Club India’s tweet which had a picture of a shirt that said “India Wants Tesla” with a caption asking Musk if there has been any progress regarding Tesla’s entry in Indian market.

According to the reports, Tesla’s most popular EV car, Model 3 is likely to be Tesla’s first launch in its Indian chapter. The Tesla Model 3 is among the most affordable Tesla cars to date. Launched in 2017, the car is the world’s best selling all-electric car. Model 3 comes with a top speed of a blazing 162 mph with a charging marvel inbuilt that charges the car in merely 15 minutes. Model 3 also offers a range that is up to 500 km, a number that is sure to please the Indian auto heads. Model 3 along with Model Y accounts for nearly 89% of Tesla’s tidal sales in 2020’s last quarter.

Reports suggest that Model 3 will be priced at about Rs. 55-60 lakhs with books resuming in India as early as next month. Earlier, Tesla had opened bookings for their all-electric vehicles in 2016, however, due to infrastructure issues the bookings were closed and the debut was delayed indefinitely. 

As the news for Tesla’s apparent debut in 2021 broke, Dalal Street too felt a positive shockwave of the news. During the intraday trade on December 29, the shares of battery-manufacturers like Exide Industries, Eveready Industries, Panasonic Energy company, etch increased up to 15%.

If Tesla is able to capitalize on its hype and market value and convert it into a legitimate demand in the Indian automotive market, Elon Musk’s dream of a world functioning mostly on clean energy would come one step closer to reality. Do you think Indian buyers will get on the Tesla hype? Let us know!