India’s electric vehicle transformation is being driven not only by large-scale manufacturing but also by early-stage innovation, risk-taking and category creation led by startups.
While the Auto PLI scheme would have played an important role in catalyzing investment, its current structure runs the risk of prioritizing past scale over future potential. This creates a gap where many electric-first companies, which are investing deeply in innovation, localization and new product categories, remain outside its scope despite making meaningful contributions to the ecosystem.
EV category building in India has seen significant contribution from electric-first companies as well as legacy platforms. At Euler Motors, we have invested over ₹1,500 crore in indigenous EV technology, people, domestic manufacturing, created close to 2,000 jobs, and helped drive mass adoption in both the three-wheeler and four-wheeler cargo ecosystem.
Commercial vehicle electrification is one of the most consequential and least discussed parts of India’s EV transition. It is a segment that contributes maximum carbon emissions, polluting the world we breathe. However, fleet operators do not switch on the spirit or promise of a green future. They change when the product works and the economics make sense. Day and night.
In three-wheelers, we entered when EV penetration was less than 1%. We showed the market that an EV product could match the performance of an ICE segment vehicle while saving money and making it desirable. Segments grew, electrification improved. Recently, although we entered the electric four-wheel cargo market late than most players, we contributed to the early category development. We demonstrated that the right product pricing can accelerate EV adoption while rapidly building strong market share.
What the current PLI scheme is doing to startups is forcing us to operate at a structural cost disadvantage of ~13-16% compared to traditional OEMs in the same mohallas, same mandis, same cities. This ~13-16% can mean life or death for a startup. Over time, these risks distort competition in areas where startups are driving innovation and adoption.
My request is simple – I want nothing to do with what the incumbents have done to build up the industry. I also don’t want to take away what our government has done to build the EV industry. However, going forward, policy must reward performance, innovation, people and investment intent, not just legacy/age.
If India’s ambition is to create a global EV champion, the policy framework must recognize not only those who carry forward the past, but also those who are actively building the future.