Ministry bars Hero Electric, Benling India from EV incentive schemes over default: Report

Government had issued recovery notices to Hero Electric, Okinawa, and Benling.

The Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) has excluded Hero Electric and Benling India from participation in any incentive programme, according to a Business Standard report.  The two companies are defaulters under the MHI's flagship Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles in India Phase-II (FAME-II) scheme.

This action follows the ministry’s findings that the phased manufacturing programme (PMP) guidelines were violated by these two companies, the report added, quoting senior officials.

The PMP guidelines under the FAME scheme are designed to increase domestic value addition.

Moneycontrol couldn't independently verify the report.

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According to an earlier report, the government had issued recovery notices to Hero Electric, Okinawa, and Benling. It expected to recover around Rs 155 crore from Hero Electric, Rs 125 crore from Okinawa, and Rs 50 crore from Benling.

Benling India sold 29,803 electric two-wheelers from June 2020 to May 2023 under the FAME-II scheme. The company received subsidy payments for just 19,986 vehicles, and an “uncleared” amount of Rs 42.48 crore is still with the government, the report said. Benling India CEO Amit Kumar said the company diligently adhered to the guidelines and requirements of the FAME-II scheme.

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The central government in its interim budget, reduced the allocation for the FAME scheme by nearly 44 percent to Rs 2,671 crore for FY25, which may result in a slowdown in the adoption of electric vehicles in India.