Mamata Banerjee Gets On A YoByke e-Scooter To Protest Rising Fuel Prices

An eventful first tryst with electric propulsion for the West Bengal CM

Ever the rebel, Mamata Banerjee’s anti-establishment antics have now extended into the world of two-wheelers, as the West Bengal CM recently jumped on an e-scooter to protest rising fuel prices. The vehicle chosen for this august occasion was the Yo Drift DX from YoBykes, a long-time player in the Indian EV space.

The dissentient undertaking got off to a rocky start, with ‘Didi’ nearly falling over just moments after setting off. Fortunately, assistance was at hand in the form of, erm, hands. Didi’s humanoid training wheels kicked into action to ensure that the remainder of her journey went off without a hitch. It is not yet clear whether these are part of YoBykes’ official accessories list.

The Yo Drift DX is a low-speed e-scooter with a top speed of just 25kph, courtesy of a 250W BLDC electric motor. Available with a choice of either a lead-acid battery or a lithium-ion unit, the scooter can travel a claimed 60km on a single charge. The difference between the two batteries is the charging time: the lead acid version takes 8 hours to charge up fully while the lithium-ion battery can do it in half that time. Like most e-scooters, it's quite feature rich, coming with ride modes, a reverse function, LED lighting, keyless operation and mobile phone charging. It is priced at Rs 51,000.

In the bigger picture, fuel prices have truly become frighteningly expensive in our country. With environmental awareness not as prevalent in India as it is in the West, perhaps skyrocketing fuel prices will be the decisive factor pushing Indians over to EVs. If you are interested, here is a list of the electric two-wheelers with the longest range.