Union Heavy Industries Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey has said that the government is working on establishing charging infrastructure across the country in order to promote faster adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) in the country. He said various ministries and government departments are collaborating to set up charging infrastructure on highways and in cities. He also said ‘we are looking to promote environment-friendly vehicles. We came up with FAME-I, and after it received good response, we announced FAME-II scheme with an enhanced outlay of Rs 10,000 crore.’
The minister lauded the role played by the automotive sector in generating goods and services tax (GST) as well as providing employment opportunities to over 3 crore people in the country. He noted that the automotive sector contributes 6.4 per cent to the country's GDP. The sector accounts for 50 per cent of the entire GST collections. He pointed out that the country has now become the fourth-largest auto market in the world, and it is therefore an important part for achieving the goal of a $5-trillion economy.
Pandey said that in order to encourage the industry, the government has come out with Rs 1.5 lakh crore production-linked incentive scheme. He said that under the Atmanirbhar Mission, the country not only wants to cater to its domestic demand but also wants to export good-quality products to various international markets.
