NEW DELHI: Union minister H D Kumaraswamy on Friday launched the first scheme to provide customer facing incentives on purchase of electric trucks of up to Rs 9.6 lakh per vehicle as part of govt’s PM E-DRIVE initiative, which has earmarked Rs 500 crore for electric trucks out of its Rs 10,900 crore outlay.Industries including ports, logistics, cement and steel will be the key beneficiaries of the scheme, which envisages support of up to 5,600 electric trucks.“Diesel trucks, though constituting only 3% of the total vehicle population, contribute to 42% of transport-related greenhouse gas emissions and significantly worsen air pollution. This pioneering scheme …represents India’s first dedicated support for electric trucks. It will drive our nation toward sustainable freight mobility,” minister for heavy industries and steel Kumaraswamy said. The scheme reserves incentives for approximately 1,100 e-trucks registered in Delhi, which will address the air quality concerns in the national capital. An approximate outlay of Rs 100 crore has been earmarked for this, officials said. Scrapping of old polluting trucks is mandatory to avail incentives for e-trucks.
