Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is presenting the Union Budget 2019-2020 in the Parliament. The Finance Minister has made many announcements in her budget speech with a focus on farmers, Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana Phase III, FDI in Aviation, Media, Animation and Insurance sectors. FM also made clear in the Budget 2019 Speech that the government is very much focused on electrification. Live Streaming of Union Budget 2019-20 Speech on DD News: Watch Live Telecast of Nirmala Sitharaman's Budget Address From Parliament.

Followed by cabinet approval, the Phase-II of Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles (FAME) scheme has commenced from 1st April 2019 with an outlay of Rs 10,000 crore over a period of three years. The main objective of this scheme is to encourage faster adoption of electric vehicles by offering an upfront incentive on the purchase of electric vehicles and establishing necessary charging infrastructure for EVs. Over the period of next three years, the scheme will emphasise on supporting the electrification of public and shared transportation.

It is important to note that only advanced batteries and registered EVs will get incentives under the scheme with greater emphasis on providing affordable and environmentally friendly transportation for the common man. Additionally, the new FAME Phase-II scheme will be supported by providing subsidies for 7,000 e-buses, 5 lakh e-three-wheelers. The scheme will also benefit around 55,000 e-four-wheeler passenger cars and 10 lakh e-two-wheelers which will help in creating not only affordable but also environment-friendly public transportation options.

Mr. Shailesh Chandra, President – Electric Mobility Business and Corporate Strategy, Tata Motors Ltd mentioned, “The incentives announced today by the Finance Minister, in terms of, additional interventions and steps to support the EV adoption, reinforces a strong commitment by the government to steer electrification on a faster trajectory. The proposal to lower the GST rate for EVs to 5% and reduction in duties of EV components, which we are studying, is a welcome step. It will help in further narrowing down the cost of ownership gap against ICE vehicles. Additionally, private buyers, who were earlier not considered for a subsidy through FAME 2, will now have a reason to seriously consider an EV with the tax exemption of up to Rs. 1.5 lacs.

Tata Motors has been proactively participating in EV ecosystem creation, aligned to government’s vision of achieving a high EV penetration by 2030. Today’s announcement further emboldens our resolve and we will further accelerate our efforts.”

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 05, 2019 12:10 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).