Around 1.65 lakh EVs got support under FAME II scheme as on November 25

The second phase of Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME) India scheme, as on November 25, has supported around 1.65 lakh electric vehicles by way of demand incentive amounting to about ₹564 crore, Parliament was informed. FAME II scheme, that came into effect on April 1, 2019, is valid for five years with a total budgetary support of ₹10,000 crore.

The government has also sanctioned 6,315 electric buses to various state/city transport undertakings under Phase-II of the scheme," Minister of State for Heavy Industries Krishan Pal Gurjar informed the Lok Sabha.

Further, the ministry has sanctioned 2,877 EV charging stations in 68 cities across 25 states/UTs amounting to ₹500 crore and 1,576 charging stations amounting to ₹108 crore across nine expressways and 16 highways under the scheme.

The second phase of FAME focuses on supporting electrification of public and shared transportation with an aim to support around 7,000 e-buses, five lakh e-three wheelers, 55,000 e-four wheeler passenger cars and 10 lakh e-two wheelers through subsidies. Additionally, creation of charging infrastructure is also supported under the phase.

Phase-1 of the FAME scheme was formulated by the Ministry of Heavy Industries in March 2015 to promote adoption of electric/ hybrid vehicles in the country. It was valid upto March 31, 2019. The second phase of the scheme was formulated based on the outcome and experience gained during Phase-1 and after having consultations with all stakeholders.

In a separate written reply, Gurjar revealed that sales of automobiles have been affected in the last two years in the country due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. "Production and sales of automobiles have been impacted due to lockdown imposed to contain the spread of Covid-19," he said.

(with inputs from PTI)