EV Startup Founders Lobby for Inclusion in Govt PLI Schemes to Boost Domestic Manufacturing

Five founders from EV startups met with Union Minister for Heavy Industries H D Kumaraswamy in Bengaluru on July 4 to argue in favour of inclusion in various government PLI (production-linked incentive) schemes that currently benefit only large established companies. The representatives made the case for benefits, pointing out the scale of their investments in R&D as well as local manufacturing facilities, and the number of jobs they have created while adopting Make-in-India initiatives.  

The five founders, Euler Motors founder and CEO Saurav Kumar, Ather Energy co-founder Tarun Mehta, Matter founder Mohal Lalbhai, Raptee.HV founder Dinesh Arjun, and River co-founder Aravind Mani spoke to the minister about creating a level playing field in order to qualify for incentives under the PM E-Drive and PLI Auto schemes. The five startups are among several companies that do not meet current eligibility criteria, mainly the ability to show annual revenue of ₹10,000 crore and fixed assets worth ₹3,000 crore.

The company representatives argued that they have proven their technology and market viability, with several class-leading products between them in the EV space. However, despite their contributions to the economy of India, they do not receive the same amount of support that established legacy automakers do.

The PLI Auto scheme was established to help companies establish and scale domestic manufacturing operations, leverage economies of scale, generate employment, and build robust supply chains. It has a total corpus of ₹25,938 crore. Financial incentives are calculated on the basis of each applicant’s determined sales value for five consecutive financial years, with provisions till FY2027-28.

Similarly, the government’s PM Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement (PM E-Drive) scheme aims to promote the use of domestically manufactured affordable, eco-friendly vehicles for public transportation.

Commenting on the meeting, Mohal Lalbhai wrote on Linkedin: “The conversation went beyond EV adoption. We spoke about manufacturing depth, localisation, consumer trust, product reliability, and what it will take for India to move from being a large mobility market to becoming a global mobility technology leader.”

The meeting followed earlier engagements between the startups, policymakers and government officials regarding incentive eligibility. In a Linkedin post earlier this year, Tarun Mehta said: “If India’s ambition is to lead in electric mobility, policy needs to recognise where innovation and capability are being built. Much of the work around indigenous platforms, battery systems, software, and domestic value addition is happening within electric first companies, and they will continue to set global benchmarks in design and technology.” Agreeing with him, Aravind Mani commented “Recalibration of PLI will create a fair playing ground for more global champions to emerge!”