Without a doubt the Indian Automotive industry is one of the prominent growth drivers of our economy. It contributes about 7% to the country’s GDP. The industry is gripped with a slowdown and has been experiencing a stand-still. Being a very strong contributor to the country’s growth and industrialisation, quite some support from the government would be the need of the hour. We sincerely hope that a few bold measures to boost the demand for reviving the automobile sector can be seen in the upcoming budget.
With the transition to BS-VI, April 2020 onwards vehicle costs are expected to go up. I believe that a reduction in the GST rates which will help arrest the incessant price hike in vehicles would be the right step at this juncture. Apart from this, an incentive-based vehicle scrappage scheme could also act as a catalyst to effectively spur the demand. I am positive that the government will steadfastly rollout the scrappage policy which would be effective to generate demand.
The EV segment is another high potential space wherein the government, could provide incentives to private buyers of electric and hybrid cars and come up with policies to boost EV charging infrastructure to further strengthen the EV ecosystem.
I am confident that the government will take remedial measures to overcome the existing decline and I am expecting 2020 to be a better year for the automotive industry.