New Delhi: The Union government on Friday decided to extend the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid) and Electric Vehicles (FAME) scheme by six months until 30 September 2018, or till the time the second phase of the scheme is approved by it.
The department of heavy industries has already prepared a draft of the second phase of the scheme, which has been sent to the finance ministry for approval.
As the government intends to promote electric mobility in India, it is expected that the new version of the scheme will give exemptions and subsidies for manufacturing electric vehicle components and to buyers of electric vehicles (EVs) for commercial purposes like public transport.
FAME, launched in fiscal 2015, was meant to run for two years until March 2017. Subsequently the scheme was extended twice till March 2018.
In December, the department of heavy industries in a bid to utilize the funds sanctioned under the FAME scheme and boost electric mobility across the country, launched a pilot project for funding electric vehicles in 11 cities for public transport purposes.
Under the pilot project, a 60% subsidy is provided to buses, 20% for three-wheelers and 10-15% to four-wheelers. Almost 10% of the total subsidy will be spent on establishing charging stations.
Automobile manufacturers were eagerly awaiting an extension of the FAME scheme before the second phase is introduced some time during the current fiscal year.
“We thank the government for extending the FAME scheme for another six months. It would certainly help the industry to move forward. Also, we are looking forward to the FAME 2 scheme, which we expect would have a much more constructive approach to achieve the desired results,” said Sohinder Gill, director, corporate affairs, Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles.
Catch all the Industry News, Banking News and Updates on Live Mint. Download The Mint News App to get Daily Market Updates.