The afternoon sun beats down on Karachi’s Shahrah-e-Faisal as traffic locks into yet another jam. In an old sedan, a driver taps the steering wheel, eyes fixed on the blinking fuel gauge. At more than Rs. 270 a litre, every refill feels heavier than the last. A few lanes over, a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) glides forward almost noiselessly, its driver unbothered by the stop-and-go grind, knowing most of the ride will cost only a fraction in electricity.

This quiet contrast says a lot about where Pakistan finds itself. In cities like Karachi and Lahore, congestion is a way of life and the rising price of petrol has become a private calculation in every household. The fumes from endless traffic only add to skies already thick with smog. It is here that New Energy Vehicles (NEVs),

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