More than 3,600 electric buses were deployed across India in 2024, with Tata Motors maintaining its leadership in the segment, accounting for 40% of the market share, according to official data.
Despite this progress, electric buses remain a small fraction of India’s overall bus fleet. Government figures show that of the 58,936 buses registered last year, approximately 41,000 were diesel-powered. Among heavy passenger vehicles (HPVs), 3,568 electric buses were registered, representing a 12.5% market share. Tata Motors led the sector with 1,431 registrations, followed by Olectra Greentech (17.7%) and JBM Auto (15.6%). The latter recently secured an order for 1,021 electric buses under a government initiative.
See also: India’s Electric Bus Subsidy Quota Fills Rapidly Under PM E-DRIVE Scheme
In the multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) category, which includes minibuses, only 44 electric buses were registered last year. Overall, electric buses now constitute 6.2% of India’s total bus market.
India remains a key growth market for electric buses in 2025, with multiple large-scale orders in the pipeline. In March, Chartered Speed won a contract to procure, operate, and maintain around 900 electric buses, adding to its fleet of over 1,800 units operating in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, and Assam. The company plans to expand deployments to Jaipur, Jodhpur, Udaipur, and other cities. In February, JBM Ecolife Mobility secured a ₹55 billion (€587 million) tender for 1,021 electric buses.
See also: India Plans to Deploy 100,000 Electric Buses Under New Urban Transport Initiative
The Indian government has introduced multiple subsidy programs to accelerate EV adoption, including the PM Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement (PM E-DRIVE) scheme, which allocated ₹43.91 billion for 14,028 electric buses.
By February, subsidies for 9,800 units had already been approved. Additionally, the PM-eBus Sewa-Payment Security Mechanism aims to fund more than 38,000 electric buses by 2028-29 with a budget of ₹34.35 billion (€371.5 million).
See also: Delhi Adds 320 Electric Buses, Expands Largest EV Fleet in India
With ongoing policy support and increasing investment in electric mobility, India’s transition to electric buses is expected to gain further momentum, though diesel buses continue to dominate public transportation.
Source: sustainable-bus.com