PM E-Drive Scheme: What’s new about the new EV subsidy scheme by India Govt.
The Indian Government has announced a new electric vehicle subsidy i.e. PM E-Drive Scheme or PM Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement scheme. This new scheme will be replacing Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid and) Electric Vehicle (FAME II) scheme. The FAME II scheme has already expired in March 2024.
Benefits
Under this new scheme by the Ministry of Heavy Industries a total budget of Rs 10,900 crore has been allocated for two years. The electric vehicles that will come under this scheme include electric two-wheelers, electric three-wheelers, electric trucks, electric trucks buses as well as electric ambulances. This scheme also includes support to 88,500 electric vehicle charging sites. However, the major issue in this scheme can be the absence of electric or hybrid cars/ SUVs.
The government said, “Subsidies/demand incentives worth Rs 3,679 crore have been provided to incentivize e-2Ws, e-3Ws, e-ambulances, e-trucks and other emerging EVs. The scheme will support 24.79 lakh e-2Ws, 3.16 lakh e-3Ws, and 14,028 e-buses,”
Under this scheme, Rs 4391 crore will be used for procuring 14,028 electric buses by state transport units as well as other public transport agencies. There will be installation of 22,000 fast chargers for electric four-wheelers, 1800 fast chargers for electric buses, and 48,400 fast chargers for electric two and three-wheelers with an estimated expense of Rs 2000 crore.
When it comes to sales, two-wheelers accounted for 56 percent of subsidies per vehicle. On the other hand, three-wheelers constituted 38 percent of the EV sales. Limited options when it comes to charging and affordability are major roadblocks to the sale of electric vehicles in India.
For those who are unknown, the first phase of the FAME scheme was introduced in 2015 and ended in 2018. It had an outlay of Rs 895 crore. On the other hand, the FAME II scheme was introduced in 2019 and ended in 2022 (with an outlay of Rs 10,000 crore). It was extended to March 2024. The additional outlay was Rs 1500 crore. As the FAME II expired in March 2024, the EMPS 2024 scheme was introduced which will last till September 2024. It had a budget of Rs 778 crore.