e-Vahan Records 56.75 Lakh EVs Registered In The Country

Electric vehicle adoption in India has reached a new milestone, with 56.75 lakh EVs registered on the government's e-Vahan portal. The data was shared in the Lok Sabha by Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma, Minister of State for Heavy Industries. This growth represents a growing portion of India's total vehicle fleet, which had 3,897.71 lakh registered vehicles last year.

The Government introduced the PM e-DRIVE scheme last year with a capital outlay of ₹10,900 crore, to accelerate EV adoption across India. The program particularly focused on making electric two-wheelers and three-wheelers more accessible in rural and semi-urban areas through targeted subsidies. But a significant portion of the scheme, i.e. ₹4,391 crore, has been earmarked for deploying 14,028 electric buses, prioritising cities replacing older buses through authorised scrapping facilities. 

The program also extends beyond vehicle subsidies to include support for local manufacturing through its Phased Manufacturing Programme, aiming to reduce import dependence. As part of that agenda, ₹2,000 crore has been kept aside for developing charging infrastructure nationwide to address range anxiety concerns.

Under the scheme, which runs until March 2026, buyers will receive incentives of ₹5,000 per kWh in FY 2024-25. But that will reduce to ₹2,500 per kWh in FY 2025-26, capped at 15 per cent of the vehicle's ex-factory price. 

However, the Government of India did not mention anything about extending the subsidy scheme in the future in the latest Budget. Plus, authorities believe that the EV scenario in India has matured enough to function without subsidies. While such benefits have helped foster the growth of this segment, the PM e-Drive scheme might be the last EV subsidy scheme in the country.