Electric scooter maker Ather Energy has criticised India’s Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) policy for being “not startup-friendly”, with its co-founder and chief executive Tarun Mehta calling for a serious revisit of its design.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18 on the sidelines of Ather’s Community Day 2025 in Bengaluru, Mehta said the policy effectively shuts out startups like Ather from applying, despite their role in pushing disruption in the electric mobility sector.

“A company like Ather, which has invested the highest on EV R&D anywhere in the world and has the largest infrastructure, to not qualify for PLI — I think we should really revisit if the definitions were ever startup-friendly to begin with,” Mehta said.

He argued that the policy framework, as it stands, inadvertently favours larger incumbents who may not even have serious EV commitments.

“Why can an existing startup not apply for PLI? That’s a big lacuna. Policies like this need a correction because PLI could be transformative, but only if centred around startups,” he noted.

Mehta added that access to PLI incentives could enable Ather to launch lower-priced products and compete more aggressively in the mass-market segment. “Honestly, if we had PLI we could launch lower-priced products, but today we can’t compete in those categories because the scheme essentially tells us to stay out,” he said.

Also Read: Ather Energy unveils EL platform, voice tech and faster charging at Community Day

The comments come as Ather has doubled its market share in the past year, reaching nearly 17% in August, and emerged as the leading EV player across South India and Gujarat. At its annual Community Day, the company also unveiled its new EL platform, marking its biggest product and technology leap since the Ather 450.