Telangana Commerce Minister invites Tesla CEO Elon Musk, will work through challenges

KT Rama Rao, the Telangana Industry and Commerce Minister has made a strong appeal to Elon Musk for the company to set up operations in India, saying he would be "happy to partner Tesla in working through the challenges."

Rama Rao's statement was in reaction to a tweet by Tesla Founder and CEO Elon Musk a few days ago, in which he stated that the company was facing numerous hurdles in establishing a presence in India.

KTR said in a tweet, “Hey Elon, I am the Industry & Commerce Minister of Telangana state in India. Will be happy to partner with Tesla in working through the challenges to set shop in India/Telangana. Our state is a champion in sustainability initiatives & a top-notch business destination in India.”

"Still working through a lot of challenges with the government," Musk replied to the tweet made by the minister.

Elon Musk said in 2020 that Tesla would establish production facilities in India to produce electric vehicles. India Motors and Energy Private Limited, a Tesla subsidiary, has been established. Bengaluru is the headquarters of the company.

Elon Musk assured Indian electric vehicle enthusiasts late in 2020 that the company would deploy its product in 2021. Clearly, that didn't work out. The government lodged severe allegations against the corporation last year. Elon said that India's import tariffs are among the highest in the world. He said that the current tax system is not favorable to the expansion of the electric vehicle industry.