New Delhi, Oct. 12 -- A chicken-or-egg-first problem has developed in the country's electric truck industry with the government pushing manufacturers to comply with an ambitious localisation plan, while e-truck makers demur on indigenisation given concerns over tepid demand.

Two people aware of recent consultations between the Union heavy industries ministry and e-truck makers such as Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, Volvo Eicher Commercial Vehicles, and Murugappa-group's IPLTech, among others, said that the government had asked the manufacturers to comply with the localisation criteria in consultations earlier in October.A phased manufacturing programme (PMP) for e-trucks unveiled in July as part of the Rs.10,900-crore PM E-Drive scheme set ...