Jaipur, Aug. 11 -- Amid a nationwide debate over ethanol-blended fuel and rising petrol prices, central data on electric vehicle (EV) sales in Rajasthan recorded a sharp surge in 2026, with registrations nearly doubling in the first seven months compared with the corresponding period in 2025. According to the Centre's Vahan Dashboard, Rajasthan ranks fifth in the country in EV purchases in 2026, with nearly 90,000 electric vehicles registered so far this year. Maharashtra leads with over 200,000 EV registrations, followed by Uttar Pradesh with 204,000, Tamil Nadu with 155,000 and Karnataka with 154,000, showed the data. An analysis by HT of data available on Vahan Dashboard, shows that 86,384 EVs were sold in Rajasthan between January and July 2026, compared with 44,331 during the corresponding period in 2025. This represents an increase of nearly 95% in just one year. Electric two-wheeler sales in Rajasthan increased from 37,503 between January and July 2025 to 60,867 during the same period this year, registering growth of nearly 62%. Electric car sales, meanwhile, witnessed a much steeper rise. A total of 3,925 electric cars were sold in the state till July 2025, compared with 12,955 during the corresponding period in 2026. This translates into a year-on-year increase of around 230%. The sharp rise in EV registrations comes as Rajasthan is also expanding its public charging network. Under a centrally supported initiative, the state is working on setting up 591 EV charging stations at 262 locations. The Government of India has approved financial assistance of Rs.81.12 crore to the Rajasthan Renewable Energy Corporation for developing public EV charging infrastructure. The corporation submitted the proposal under the Centre's PM E-Drive Scheme, which seeks to accelerate EV adoption and strengthen the supporting infrastructure. Under the approved plan, Jaipur will get the highest number of charging stations at 112, followed by Ajmer with 49, Udaipur with 39 and Kota with 28. Another 34 charging stations will be installed along national and state highways to facilitate long-distance EV travel. The charging stations will largely be developed on land available with various government departments....