NEW DELHI, March 5 -- The heavy industries ministry has begun assessing proposals from state governments and state-run oil marketing companies to install charging infrastructure for electric vehicles (EV) under the Rs.10,900 crore PM E-Drive scheme, with the aim of disbursing about Rs.80 crore by the end of FY26, according to two people aware of the development.

The government has allocated Rs.2,000 crore of the scheme's overall outlay towards supporting the installation of over 72,000 EV chargers. It will cover 70-100% of the upstream costs of setting up charging stations in state-owned premises in cities and on highways, including bringing adequate grid power to the site, and 70% of the cost of actual chargers.

The government roughly ...