New Delhi, Aug. 22 -- The ministry of heavy industries has slashed the outlay for e-rickshaws under the PM Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement (PM E-DRIVE) Scheme to Rs.50 crore from Rs.192 crore.

In a recent amendment notified on 13 August, the government placed its bets on providing demand incentives to electric three-wheelers used for passenger or cargo transport, i.e., the L5 category.

The amendment also increased the outlay for the L5 category vehicles from Rs.715 crore to Rs.857 crore, following low uptake of the incentives for e-rickshaws.

Low uptake was seen particularly in the e-rickshaw category, as the vehicles rely on imported components and struggle to meet the scheme's localization criteria.

A lit...