EV incentive scheme FAME-III to have Rs 10,000 cr outlay

India’s EV incentive programme, Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric vehicles (FAME), is all set for a new edition. Titled FAME-III, the third edition of the ambitious scheme will have an allocation of Rs 10,000 crore.

FAME-III would act as a follow-up of FAME-II, which ended on March 31 2024, and the new programme will be presented for approval before the Union Cabinet once the new government comes to office after results of the general elections are declared on June 4 this year. The third edition of FAME is expected to be launched within 100 days of the new government taking charge.

VEHICLES ELIGIBLE FOR INCENTIVES

Electric two-wheelers and three-wheelers can avail incentive on purchase under the FAME-III programme. FAME-II, it may be recalled, gave a subsidy of 15 per cent on the sale price of electric scooters.

While on electric cars, a decision is yet to be taken on whether the scheme would extend to these vehicles, especially commercial cars operated by cab aggregators, or platforms that connect passengers with available cab drivers through mobile app or the net. 

There is a proposal to offer incentives to electric cars that cost below Rs 15 lakh, as was the case in FAME-II. Sops might be extended to hybrid cars that stay below a price cap.

FAME-II had seen the government granting purchase incentive to 7,000 electric buses and the number is expected to grow under FAME-III, especially for electric buses that the State Transport Undertakings (STU) buy.

ALL ABOUT EMPS

The Electric Mobility Promotion Scheme, or EMPS, will continue under the FAME-III programme. EMPS was introduced as a temporary scheme and, riding a Rs 500-crore disbursement, the programme is meant to provide a push to the sale of electric two-wheelers and three-wheelers until July 2024. The government incentive for electric two-wheelers goes up to Rs 10,000 per vehicle and up to Rs 50,000 per electric three-wheeler under the scheme. Overall, EMPS aimed at ensuring that sales of electric vehicles reached more than 3,72,215. Incentives are given to vehicles that have advanced batteries, in a bid to encourage advanced technology.

FRESH CERTIFICATION

Auto manufacturers who want to avail incentives on EV sales would have to go through a fresh certification process, what with the government updating guidelines under FAME-III. Certification according to FAME-III would be valid for two years as far as the period for sales is concerned, compared to the five-year validity under FAME-II.