New Delhi, Dec. 26 -- The heavy industries ministry is likely to exhaust its Rs.857-crore subsidy fund for electric three-wheelers in the L5 category under the Rs.10,900-crore PM E-Drive scheme three months ahead of schedule, according to the government's letter to manufacturers. The funds were originally expected to last until March 2026, but the high adoption of electric three-wheelers means they have been disbursed faster than anticipated.

In a publicly available letter to the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam) dated 23 December, the ministry said it would stop granting incentives on reaching the scheme's target of 288,809 L5 three-wheelers, or on 26 December, whichever came earlier.

"Para 46 of the scheme notification...