Final Preparations Underway for FAME III, Says Minister Kumaraswamy

Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy announces that the third phase of the FAME scheme is near completion, though it will not be part of the next union Budget set for July 23. The FAME initiative promotes green mobility by incentivizing electric vehicle purchases.

New Delhi (India), July 16 (ANI) – Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy announced that the third phase of the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME) scheme is nearing its final stages. However, he noted that it would not be included in the upcoming union Budget scheduled for July 23.

Speaking on the sidelines of an industry event, Kumaraswamy, who is Heavy Industries and Steel Minister, stated that preparatory work for FAME III is actively underway, with recommendations from all seven concerned ministries on implementation. 'Preparatory work is ongoing. All seven ministries have recommended how to frame the program; in some future months or days, we are going to implement it,' he said.

FAME II, the current phase, concluded on March 31, 2024, after its inception in 2019, having distributed Rs 11,500 crore in subsidies. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman allocated Rs 2,671.33 crore for the FAME scheme in the Interim Budget. Launched in 2015, FAME aims to incentivize electric vehicle adoption to hasten the transition to green mobility.

The scheme's first phase, FAME 1.0, ran from April 1, 2015, to March 31, 2019, utilizing its full Rs 529 crore allocation. FAME 2.0 commenced on April 1, 2019, with a budget of Rs 10,000 crore, focusing 86% of funds on demand incentives for electric vehicle adoption.