EV Fires
What should brands do to ensure rider safety?

Vivekananda Hallekere is the co-founder and CEO of Bounce,India's first smart urban mobility solution, with a mission of making daily commute stress-free, time-saving, reliable and convenient.Vivek strongly believes that mobility is a basic human need just like food, water and shelter; thereby, he advocates the democratisation of commuting. Together with his co-founders - Anil and Varun, Vivek started WickedRide in 2014 with a fleet of eight motorcycles. Soon, Vivek and the team realised that there was a larger market need for last-mile connectivity in cities like Bangalore, thus setting up Bounce in 2016. Bounce taps into the need for daily, affordable safe travel options for various commuters.At Bounce, Vivek handles Business Development, Marketing and Sales. He also plays a crucial role in managing the company’s dialogue and engagement with government bodies as well as authorities including the Government of Karnataka. Additionally, Vivek holds and manages Bounce’s investor relationships.Previously, Vivek assisted in setting up business in Singapore, US and UK. Also has expertise in Incorporating Companies in India, FEMA and RBI compliance requirement for Companies with FDI.A graduate from The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India.

Niraj’s experience with previous start-up companies and technology giants (Yahoo!, NetApp) working on software development, connected autonomous systems, and IoT has given Niraj insights on how multiple technologies synergize to build products. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Information Science and Engineering from BMSCE, Bangalore and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Asian Institute of Management, Manila. Along with Narayan Subramaniam, he conceptualized Ultraviolette. Established in 2016, Ultraviolette Automotive was born out of the unique vision of creating top-of-the line mobility solutions driven by progressive design and energy efficient technology.Niraj believes that solving complex problems requires multidisciplinary models and persistent iterative loops of simulations, validation and testing to create a product that delivers on all fronts. With his work at Ultraviolette too, rigorous attention at every stage of development and testing ensures that every aspect of the products they develop is fine-tuned to perfection.Niraj builds the technology roadmap for the company and also leads the technology development at Ultraviolette. He coordinates work across teams and verticals to bring to life e-mobility as it has never been known before.

An astute business leader and passionate motorhead, Mr. Vinkesh Gulati has been actively associated with FADA for over 10 years. As President and a key member in the FADA Executive Committee, Mr. Gulati has helped FADA reach newer heights.A Law graduate with a Master’s in Commerce and Business Administration, Mr. Gulati heads United Automobiles, which has state-of-the-art dealerships of Mahindra and Bajaj Auto. Under his leadership, United Automobiles has emerged as a pioneer, winning a multitude of awards for dealer satisfaction and sales as well as gaining recognition for its excellent service and quality. Mr. Gulati is also the Senior Vice President of United Group of Institutions and manages educational institutions in Allahabad and Greater Noida, which impart degrees in Engineering and Management. Mr. Vinkesh Gulati holds a key position in the Mahindra Dealer Council and serves as Treasurer for the Automotive Skills Development Council.A passionate and hands-on leader, Mr. Gulati believes strongly in nurturing and developing manpower as a vital aspect of his businesses. His dedication to teamwork always keeps his team motivated and in high spirits.Mr. Gulati’s extensive experience in business planning, analytical approach to problems, and dedication towards the automobile community will ensure that FADA breaks newer grounds and flourishes under his term as President.

Sohinder Gill is the CEO of HERO ELECTRIC and DIRECTOR GENERAL of the Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV) for the last 15 years.A Mechanical Engineer with MBA, he started his career with Larsen & Toubro in the Aerospace division in the Satellite launching project of ISRO. He later worked with leading automotive organisations like HERO HONDA, ESCORTS, YAMAHA, KINETIC HONDA, and JK GROUP across functions including Manufacturing, Engineering, Marketing, and International Business, and Strategy management.He started SMEV in 2008 and enrolled 20 EV players to create a collective vision for electric mobility in India. SMEV plays a pivotal role in creating an optimum ecosystem to promote EVs by assisting the Government and multiple institutions. Today SMEV is a strong, independent 65-member organization representing the entire spectrum of EVs like Tata, Ashok Leyland, Mahindra, Hero, Ather, Indian Oil, BPCL, Bosch, Exicom, and many others. The views and opinions of SMEV are respected and trusted by the stakeholders.Sohinder Gill regularly interacts with policymakers, academia, technology institutions, certification agencies, and foreign partners to help create the right ecosystem for EVs in India. He looks forward to mentoring start-ups that may be struggling to get a foothold in this Industry.

Chetan Maini started the Reva Electric Car Company (now Mahindra Electric) With Reva, Chetan disrupted the mobility sector and created awareness on electric mobility in India as well as 24 countries globally. Chetan and Uday Khemka of SUN New Energy Systems, a clean energy market leader, set up SUN Mobility in April 2017. He has served on a number of Government boards set up to frame EV policies. He has been a member of multiple boards such as India’s National Board on Electric Mobility (NBEM) formed by the Government of India’s Ministry of Heavy Industries & Enterprises; and on the Technology Advisory Group (TAG) on Electric.