Central sops, pvt finance lift electric truck sales in August

According to Niti Aayog, of 834,578 trucks which were sold in India in 2024, only 6,220 were electric

- Manas Pimpalkhare

Sales of electric trucks almost doubled in the first three weeks of August following the Central government's ₹500-crore incentive scheme introduced in July and new private financing options for consumers.

A total of 60 electric medium and heavy goods carriers were registered as of 19 August, according to the Vahan portal. Monthly sales so far in 2025 have ranged from 11 in February to 38 in May.

The ministry of heavy industries notified the guidelines for claiming e-truck incentives under the PM Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement (PME-DRIVE) scheme in early July, offering upfront capital subsidy of ₹2.7-9.3 lakh for the purchase of each truck. It is set to subsidise more than 5,600 such trucks.

The PM E-DRIVE scheme was extended this month for two more years to March 2028 as the incentives carved out for electric buses, trucks and vehicle-charging infrastructure were not disbursed.