FICCI Chairperson of the Electric Vehicle Committee of India, Sulajja Firodia Motwani has stressed the need to reduce the GST rate on batteries and charging services to keep EVs competitive. Speaking at the FICCI National Conference on EVs, he also advocated increasing the Prime Minister's E-Drive Fund to increase sales of electric vehicles. “We will recommend to the GST Council to rationalize GST taxation on EV-related sectors,” Motwani said.
18 percent GST is applicable on charging
Elaborating on the demands, he said, “At present 18 percent GST is being imposed on charging services, we will request to reduce it to 5 percent, so that charging is available to the consumers at a lower cost.” He said that EV The GST rate on batteries used should also be reduced to 5 percent. Motwani is also the Founder and CEO of Kinetic Green Energy and Power Solutions. He said, “There is 5 percent GST on EV, while there is 18 percent GST on battery.
Demand for review of incentive amount under Prime Minister e-Drive Scheme
Sulajja said that these two reforms on GST will go a long way in making EVs more competitive for consumers. Motwani welcomed the Prime Minister e-Drive Scheme and said that with the increasing demand, there is a need to review the incentive amount. He said that since demand is increasing, perhaps the incentive amount should be reviewed. He further said, “We believe that Pradhan Mantri e-Drive has great potential and will prove to be very helpful in promoting electric transportation.”
The government had started the Prime Minister e-drive scheme in October.
Let us tell you that in October this year, the Central Government had launched the Pradhan Mantri E-Drive Scheme with an outlay of Rs 10,900 crore to promote electric vehicles, establish charging infra and develop the EV manufacturing ecosystem in India. This scheme will be applicable from October 1, 2024 to March 31, 2026.
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