Hitting out at allegations of purportedly violating subsidy norms, Okinawa Autotech (Okinawa) Founder and Managing Director Jeetender Sharma says the conditions of phase-wise localisation of components required to get the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles (FAME) II subsidy scheme were relaxed by the government for two years off the back of a pandemic breakout.
Sharma clarifies that the “company has not received any notice from the government to refund subsidies since 2019-20”. He points out that Okinawa has always adhered to government policies and, in fact, was the first company in the industry to receive a FAME II certification in 2019.
“FAME II was announced in 2019 with several provisos — one of them was the phase-wise localisation of components over the next two years. However, due to two Covid waves, these norms were relaxed for all players,” he says.
