Speed up subsidy payment to electric vehicle buyers: HC directs Delhi govt
While the Delhi government argued that no prescribed timeline is specified for disbursal of subsidies in the policy, the court did not find merit in the argument.
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The High Court then directed that procedural delays be addressed immediately and payments be disbursed expeditiously after the dedicated bank account is set up. (File photo)The Delhi High Court Wednesday directed the Delhi government to pay subsidies expeditiously to electric vehicle (EV) purchasers. The court was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) highlighting that around Rs 48 crore worth of subsidies remain to be disbursed.
The petition by Jan Seva Welfare Society, a registered society working on issues of public welfare, highlighted that the Delhi Electric Vehicle Policy 2020, notified in August 2020, stipulated subsidies and their prompt disbursal for EV purchasers.
But, the petition said, there has been an “unexplained non-disbursal of subsidy”, amounting to approximately Rs 48.36 crore, to “thousands of legitimate and eligible purchasers of EVs in Delhi, despite their compliance with all eligibility criteria” under the policy.
While the Delhi government argued that no prescribed timeline is specified for disbursal of subsidies in the policy, the court did not find merit in the argument. It remarked, “The government is taking shield of the fact that the… policy does not provide any fixed timeline… such a ground, in our opinion, is not available for the government.”
The government, however, added that over 78,158 beneficiaries have received subsidies worth over Rs 179 crore and that a dedicated bank account for such disbursals is being set up to address the issues of delay.
The court then directed that procedural delays be addressed immediately and payments be disbursed expeditiously after the dedicated bank account is set up.
The PIL highlighted that such inaction by the government “discourages citizens from transitioning to electric vehicles and, in effect, incentivises the continued use of petrol and diesel vehicles, thereby exacerbating air pollution and associated public health hazards”.
The organisation had made a representation to this effect in June, but has not received a response to date.
In an RTI response, the government had stated that disbursals with respect to 25,496 EVs are pending and had blamed the delay on “technical issues” in its portal.
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