Phase II of FAME will Focus on Electrification of Public Transportation

The second phase of the FAME scheme will focus on supporting the electrification of public and shared transportation over the next three years.

The second phase of Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles in India (FAME India) scheme will focus on supporting the electrification of public and shared transportation over the next three years, the Minister of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Arvind Ganpat Sawant has said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.

The scheme will support through subsidies 7,000 electric buses, five lakh electric three-wheelers, 55,000 electric four-wheeler passenger cars and 10 lakh electric two-wheelers to provide affordable and environment-friendly public transportation options for the masses.

With budgetary support of Rs 10,000 crore, the scheme which initiated on. April 1, 2019, will support the creation of charging infrastructure in select cities and along major highways to address range anxiety among users of electric vehicles, according to the statement. So far, five automobile manufacturers have registered to avail benefits of the scheme.

The first phase of FAME India scheme was launched for two years on April 1, 2015, but due to several extensions was operational for a period double what it was planned for, when it ended on March 31, 2019. About 2.78 lakh electric and hybrid vehicles (xEVs) were supported with a total demand incentive of Rs 343 crore. Besides, 465 buses were sanctioned to various cities and states.

FAME India is a part of the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) 2020 with a vision and roadmap for faster adoption of electric vehicles and their manufacturing in the country.

This plan has been designed to enhance national fuel security, provide affordable and environmentally-friendly transportation and enable the Indian automotive industry to achieve global manufacturing leadership, Sawant said in his written reply.

In March, we reported that the owners of commercial electric vehicles (three wheelers and four wheelers) will be required to have a public transport permit from a government agency in order to avail the benefits FAME II scheme.

It was also mandated that the public transport permit required for electric three-wheelers and four-wheelers needed to state that the vehicle will be used only for public transport purposes and not for private use.