New Delhi: The heavy industries ministry has cleared disbursal of ₹503.86 crore for the installation of 4,874 public electric vehicle (EV) charging stations under the flagship PM E-Drive scheme, marking one of the first major infrastructure rollouts aimed at accelerating India's EV adoption and strengthening energy security.
The approvals are part of the government's broader ₹2,000-crore plan to set up more than 72,000 EV chargers across the country under the ₹10,900-crore PM E-Drive scheme. Heavy industries minister H.D. Kumaraswamy said on Tuesday that the cleared proposals include those from public sector fuel retailers and several state governments.
Setting up charging infrastructure for EVs is critical to adoption, especially in the wake of energy security concerns amid the ongoing West Asia war. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on 10 May urged citizens to adopt more EVs and opt for work-from-home instead of commuting to office every day.
Speaking at a conference in Bengaluru on EV charging, Kumaraswamy said the government had cleared proposals from state-run oil marketing firms Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd (HPCL), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL), Indian Oil Corp Ltd (IOCL), as well as states such as Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Telangana, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
Mint had reported on 5 March that the ministry had received proposals on the issue from HPCL and BPCL as well as a few state governments.
The minister also said that Karnataka, his home state, will get 1,243 charging stations under the scheme, with a support of ₹123.26 crore.
To be sure, as on 1 March 2026, India saw 27,737 EV chargers installed over the previous five years, the ministry of heavy industries told Parliament. However, only 22,753 were operational, it added.
Kumaraswamy said EVs were not only a tool to decarbonize Indian roads, but also critical for ensuring the country's energy security.
The US-Iran war has led to global fuel supply disruptions and price surge, and a rationalization of consumption would help the import-dependent country better manage its supplies as well as foreign exchange reserves.
The government’s subsidy under the PM E-Drive scheme will cover 70-100% of the upstream costs of setting up charging stations at state-owned premises in cities and on highways, including bringing adequate grid power to the site, and 70% of the cost of the chargers.
In 2025, the government roughly halved the benchmark cost of setting up public EV charging stations from the 2022 estimates to ₹1.6 lakh for a 12-kW charger, ₹3.4 lakh for 60-kW, ₹5 lakh for 120-kW, ₹8 lakh for 240-kW and ₹12.5 lakh for a 360-kW one. These costs are used to calculate subsidies.
The government provides subsidies for electric two-wheelers, three-wheelers, buses, trucks, hybrid and electric ambulances, and EV chargers under the PM E-Drive scheme. PM E-Drive subsidies for three-wheeler (L5 category) have lapsed in FY26, while those for two-wheelers have been extended till the end of July 2026. Subsidies for e-rickshaws (L3 category), trucks, and buses will continue till the end of FY28.
EV charging infrastructure assumes importance as it directly reduces EV users' range anxiety—the fear of battery draining during a drive—boosting the adoption of such vehicles as India sets out to become a net-zero carbon emitter by 2070.
According to NITI Aayog’s India Electric Mobility Index 2024, the latest available report, Haryana and Karnataka have led the way among states in charging infrastructure preparedness.
The government think tank said in its August 2025 report that public charging facilities for EVs were inadequate and that the existing public charging stations were battling low utilization. It recommended that EV charging infrastructure should be scaled up strategically after testing their viability at particular locations.
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