Electric two-wheeler startup Ather Energy on Tuesday launched its flagship electric scooter model Ather 450 and Ather 340.

According to the company, Ather 450 is priced at Rs 1.24 lakh (on road) and Ather 340 is available for Rs 1.09 lakh.

But there is a twist in it. The price the company is offering is after Rs 22,000 discount under government’s Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles (FAME) subsidy policy.

So, if you want to claim this discount, then you must produce Aadhaar card. Without which, price of the scooter would go up by Rs 22,000.

“Subsidy claim will require Aadhaar number for individuals or PAN number for business buyers,” says the company website.

FAME is a scheme launched by the government to provide financial support to electric and hybrid vehicle.

This scheme is launched to promote eco-friendly vehicles in the country.

As per the scheme, depending on technology, battery operated scooters and motorcycles will be eligible to demand incentives ranging between Rs 1,800 to Rs 29,000.

In April 2017, Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, under which FAME scheme operates, made Aadhaar mandatory for availing such subsidies.

So, the actual cost of the scooter is Rs 22,000 more than what company said during the launch.

There are around 1.21 billion Aadhaar holders in India, as of May 2018.

Adhaar was envisioned to be a platform to help poor get subsidy, but slowly it has crept in for most services including income tax filing to bank account opening.

The government also made Aadhaar mandatory to avail both welfare and non-welfare schemes.

In March 27, the Supreme Court ruled that the government cannot be stopped from using Aadhaar identification for its non-welfare schemes like opening of bank accounts and filing of tax returns, etc.

However, the apex court said that it cannot make Aadhaar mandatory for welfare schemes and it has allowed the government to use it in some schemes, not permitted to be used as a mandatory requirement.

Ather 450 is designed for city riding conditions and comes with a top speed of 80 km/hr and a range of 75 km. It can go from 0-40 kmph in 3.9 seconds.

The Ather 340 has a riding range of 60 km and offers 20Nm of torque. Top speed is an impressive 70 kmph and the scooter accelerates to 40 kmph in 5.1 seconds.