September 12, 2024: In a major move to accelerate the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in India, the Union Cabinet has approved the PM Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement (PM E-Drive) Scheme. This ambitious initiative, along with the Payment Security Mechanism (PSM) under the PM-eBus Sewa, will see a total investment of Rs. 10,900 crore over the next two years.

The PM E-Drive scheme will provide ₹3,679 crore in subsidies to promote the purchase of a wide range of electric vehicles, including two-wheelers, three-wheelers, ambulances, and trucks. The scheme aims to support the acquisition of 2.479 million electric two-wheelers, 316,000 electric three-wheelers, and 14,028 electric buses. Subsidies will be managed through a dedicated portal set up by the heavy industries ministry, benefiting both buyers and manufacturers.

An additional ₹4,391 crore has been allocated to public transport agencies for the procurement of 14,028 electric buses. Convergence Energy Services Limited (CESL) will oversee the demand aggregation in nine major cities—Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Surat, Bangalore, Pune, and Hyderabad. The scheme also plans to support interstate and intercity electric bus services in collaboration with state authorities.

States and cities will be prioritised for public buses based on their compliance with guidelines for the scrapping of old vehicles. As many as 22,100 fast chargers for e-4 Ws, 1800 for e-buses, and 48,400 for e-2W/3Ws will be installed with the allocation of ₹2000 crore to reduce the range anxiety of EV buyers.

The scheme will also incentivise the adoption of electric trucks with an allocation of ₹500 crore and for modernising testing agencies for the EV ecosystem with an outlay of ₹780 crore.

To address infrastructure needs, ₹2,000 crore will be invested in installing 22,100 fast chargers for electric four-wheelers, 1,800 chargers for electric buses, and 48,400 chargers for electric two-wheelers and three-wheelers. This infrastructure development aims to reduce range anxiety and support the growing number of EV users.

Moreover, the scheme includes ₹500 crore for incentivizing the adoption of electric trucks and ₹780 crore for modernizing testing agencies to support the evolving EV ecosystem.