Shashank Srivastava, senior executive director (marketing and sales), Maruti Suzuki, told ET that lower acquisition costs than EVs, self-charging technology that does not require supporting charging infrastructure, and fuel efficiency in city driving conditions have been driving demand for strong hybrid vehicles. "They run 40-50% of the time on battery in urban cycles, reducing fuel consumption and tailpipe emissions," said Srivastava. "At the same time, the acquisition cost is lower at 1.28X, vs 1.5X for EVs, compared with petrol cars."