72,000 EV public charging stations will be established in India at a cost of Rs 2,000 crore: Central Government - Headline24x7Live

New Delhi
The central government said on Wednesday that with a financial outlay of Rs 2,000 crore, the 'PM E-Drive Scheme' will assist in the establishment of about 72,000 EV public charging stations across the country. The Ministry of Heavy Industries said in a statement that these stations will be installed in high-traffic destinations such as 50 national highway corridors as well as metro cities, toll plazas, railway stations, airports, fuel outlets and state highways.
Union Heavy Industries Minister HD Kumaraswamy presided over an inter-co-ordination meeting to review the implementation of EV charging infrastructure under the 'PM E-Drive Scheme'. The scheme, launched under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is aimed at enabling cleaner transport and building a nationwide eV-Reddy ecosystem to enable transport and reduce India's dependence on fossil fuels.
Kumaraswamy said, "India is on the way to become a global model for sustainable transport. The PM e-Drive is a transformative initiative, aims to provide access to our citizens to clean, affordable and convenient mobility options. We are not only making infrastructure, we are laying the foundation of energy and greenery security."
The Union Minister also accepted the integrated role of various stakeholders in the implementation of this initiative. Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) is being considered as a nodal agency for demand aggregation and development of a unified digital super app, which will serve as a single platform for EV users across India.
The app will feature real-time slot booking, payment integration, charger availability status and progress dashboard to track National Deployment under the PM E-Drive Scheme. BHEL will also coordinate with states and ministries to compile and evaluate the proposals of charger installation.
Kumaraswamy said, "Clean Energy Transition cannot be successful alone. This meeting reflects our commitment to act as a government. The ministry, public sector enterprises and state, are all united to give results at the ground level.