The government also acknowledged that the challenges faced in the widespread adoption of electric mobility
In a bid to accelerate the adoption of cleaner sources of mobility like electric vehicles, the Centre has spent up to Rs 871 crore till June end.
In a written response to the Lok Sabha, Minister of State for Heavy Industries Mahendra Nath Pandey revealed that the budget utilised under Phase-II of Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid and) Electric Vehicles in India (FAME India) scheme up until June 30, 2021 has been Rs 871 crore.
The government formulated the FAME India Scheme in 2015 to improve the infrastructure required for the large-scale use of electric vehicles. Under the Phase-II of the scheme, Rs. 1,000 crore has been allocated for the development of charging infrastructure.
“Under Phase-II of FAME India Scheme, 87,659 Electric Vehicles have been supported till 20.07.2021 by way of incentive. Further, 6,265 electric buses have been sanctioned to various State/City Transport Undertakings under Phase-II of the Scheme,” the government informed the Parliament.
The government also acknowledged that the challenges faced in the widespread adoption of electric mobility have mainly been the high upfront cost of electric vehicles as compared to regular cars and customer anxiety about the range of electric vehicles.
Phase I of the FAME scheme had recently achieved to set up 350 electric vehicle charging stations across the country. While 48 in Chandigarh, 94 were established in Delhi, 49 in Jaipur, 29 in Ranchi, 10 in Agra, among others.
FAME-II Scheme is being implemented for a period of 5 years from 2019 till 2024. The Heavy Industries Ministry has sanctioned 2,877 Electric Vehicle Charging Stations amounting to about Rs 500 crore in 68 cities across 25 States/UTs under Phase II of FAME India Scheme. This constitutes a major jump from the 427 charging stations that had been installed under the first phase of the scheme.
Alongside the recent amendments to the scheme has further reduced the upfront cost of electric two wheelers and three wheelers by providing a 20 per cent subsidy rate.
Homegrown companies such as Ather Energy and Ola Electric have announced plans to ramp up manufacturing capacity while several state government industrial departments have announced a policy push towards electric mobility.
