Centre flags delay in Karnataka approvals for e-bus procurement

New Delhi: The Center has flagged the postponement of approvals for the purchase of 4,500 electric buses by the Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation.

The union heavy industries ministry, in a notification to the Karnataka government, said that the tender for electric buses under the PM E-DRIVE program was concluded last year, but the tender letters for the procured buses are yet to be issued by the state.

Officials said incentives worth Rs 1.505 billion could not be distributed due to differences between the center and the Karnataka government. PM E-DRIVE is the centre’s flagship electric vehicle incentive scheme with an allocation of ₹ 4,391 crore for deployment of 14,028 electric buses in major cities.