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Message we get is we don’t want you – Toyota stops expansion in India saying taxes too high

Indian governments keep taxes on cars, motorbikes so high that companies find it hard to build scale & buyers find them out of reach, Toyota says.

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Bangalore: Toyota Motor Corp. won’t expand further in India due to the country’s high tax regime, a blow for Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who’s trying to lure global companies to offset the deep economic malaise brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

The government keeps taxes on cars and motorbikes so high that companies find it hard to build scale, said Shekar Viswanathan, vice chairman of Toyota’s local unit, Toyota Kirloskar Motor. The high levies also put owning a car out of reach of many consumers, meaning factories are idled and jobs aren’t created, he said.

“The message we are getting, after we have come here and invested money, is that we don’t want you,” Viswanathan said in an interview. In the absence of any reforms, “we won’t exit India, but we won’t scale up.”

Toyota, one of the world’s biggest carmakers, began operating in India in 1997. Its local unit is owned 89% by the Japanese company and has a small market share — just 2.6% in August versus almost 5% a year earlier, Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations data show.

While Toyota Kirloskar continues to be committed to India and needs to protect jobs, utilizing the capacity it has created “will take time,” the company said in a statement Tuesday after the Bloomberg story was published. The unit is “confident” the government will do everything possible to support the industry, which has requested a “viable tax structure,” it said.

In India, motor vehicles including cars, two-wheelers and sports utility vehicles (although not electric vehicles), attract taxes as high as 28%. On top of that there can be additional levies, ranging from 1% to as much as 22%, based on a car’s type, length or engine size. The tax on a four-meter long SUV with an engine capacity of more than 1500 cc works out to be as high as 50%.

Ford, GM out

The additional levies are typically imposed on what are considered to be “luxury” goods. As well as cars, in India that can include cigarettes and sparkling water.

India is planning to offer incentives worth $23 billion to attract firms to set up manufacturing, people familiar with the matter said last week, including production-linked breaks for automakers. International automakers have struggled to expand in the world’s fourth-biggest car market.

General Motors Co. quit the country in 2017 while Ford Motor Co. agreed last year to move most of its assets in India into a joint venture with Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. after struggling for more than two decades to win over buyers. That effectively ended independent operations in a country Ford had once said it wanted to be one of its top three markets by 2020.


Also read: With trucks sitting idle, India’s fuel demand set to hit 5-year low in 2020-21


 

Such punitive taxes discourage foreign investment, erode automakers’ margins and make the cost of launching new products “prohibitive,” Viswanathan said.

“You’d think the auto sector is making drugs or liquor,” he said. Toyota, which also has an alliance with Suzuki Motor Corp. to sell some of Suzuki’s compact cars under its own brand, is currently utilizing just about 20% of its capacity in a second plant in India.

Taxes on electric vehicles, currently 5%, will probably also go up once sales increase, Viswanathan said, referring to what he says has become a pattern with successive governments in India.

While discussions are ongoing between ministries for a reduction in taxes, there may not any immediate agreement on an actual cut, India’s Heavy Industries Minister Prakash Javadekar said earlier this month.

A finance ministry spokesman didn’t immediately respond to messages seeking comment.

EV challenge

Automobile sales in India were weathering a slump before the coronavirus pandemic, with at least half a million jobs lost. A lobby group has predicted it may take as many as four years for sales to return to levels seen before the slowdown.

The biggest players are the local units of Suzuki and Hyundai Motor Co., which have cornered the market for compact, affordable cars. Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. and Hyundai Motor India Ltd. have a combined share of almost 70%.

Toyota in India has largely pivoted toward hybrid vehicles, which attract taxes of as much as 43% because they aren’t purely electric.

But in a nation where few can even afford a car, let alone a more environmentally friendly one, EVs or their hybrid cousins have yet to gain much acceptance. Elon Musk, the billionaire founder of Tesla Inc., has said import duties would make his vehicles unaffordable in India.

“Market India always has to precede Factory India, and this is something the politicians and bureaucrats don’t understand,” Viswanathan said. Modi’s much-touted Make in India is another program aimed at attracting foreign companies.

India needs to have demand for a product before asking firms to set up shop, yet “at the slightest sign of a product doing well, they slap it with a higher and higher tax rate,” he said. – Bloomberg


Also read: Demand for trucks, commercial vehicles to take 3 years to return, Daimler India says


 

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97 COMMENTS

  1. Surprised that you haven’t taken this story down even after the company has said that this is wrong information. Or maybe you should carry on as this is your bread and butter by peddling wrong information

  2. Automobile Industry is generating lot of employment. If we have to pay 28-29% taxes for buying normal cars, its extraneous. Too heavy for a capital good like car. It goes to 49% for high end SUVs, not discussing that anyway. Indian govt must bring more people to tax net instead of taxing only formal sector.

    • Print is always known for running it’s propaganda blogs..if govt taxes high then it’s for indian army,who needs arms and weapons..every coin has two sides, but the print and the wire decided that anyhow they will support china not india,.I hate this kind of rubbish mentality..shame on the print

  3. Its a wrong news. Yesterday evening Mr. Prakash Javedkar and Mr. Vikram Kirloskar confirmed that it’s not real. They are going to invest 2000 crores in next 12 months.

  4. Hats off to Mr. Vishwanathan. Atleast he shared the pain going on Auto industry. I’m sure this problem is with other automobile companies. Hence other market players are unable to raise their concern. You made a very valid point and it’s direct attack to the govt policies. It require hurts to share the pain.

    • You don’t work in the auto sector – you don’t know anything. But still clowns like you talk ? Toyota, GM, Ford etc were never serious about India – same goes with VW. That’s why their sales are pathetic, their investment so low and their focus on external markets. The fact that despite 20 years in India, Toyota doesn’t have a good diesel engine for small cars in India is proof of their bogus “commitment”. But librandus don’t want to learn facts – they can’t comprehend the truth either. Only their delusions matter and any loser who whines is their chaddi dost.

  5. The concept of luxury tax is a bit outdated in today’s world. Every single purchase made by a consumer gives boost to the economy.
    While we can pat Maruti & Hyundai for producing efficient n affordable cars, but by making the situation difficult for other players, will not help the economy. The article also mentions about half a million job cuts, who will generate the employment for these people. Allowing Toyota, Ford & GM to expand their business will definitely help Indian people than merely these companies themselves.

    • India is a very competitive market – its not for lazy or over-confident players. That’s why the largest car companies like GM, Ford, VW, Toyota are struggling in india because they have taken a laid back approach and have not been aggressive in entering the Indian market with products with value proposition. Name one Toyota Product that was “Made for India” ? None – all their products are copies or clones of the ASEAN products – from Innova, to Fortuner . And they are only able to succeed in a segment they have no serious competition in. Nowhere else – why? Because their margins are very high and their localization is very poor! That’s the story of Toyota which wants to dump second rate junk from Thailand in India and hope to make money. Atleast Ford came out with EcoSport and GM with Chevy Beat to try and enter the market in India competitively – but they were not able to innovate and keep up with the pace of Maruti, Hyundai – so whose fault is that ? Tax and duties ??

      Coming to Ford , GM and VW – do you know that these car companies have exited Japan also ? Because Japanese market- despite being one of the largest in the world is extremely closed and restrictive for business. Every country – even America has a certain environmental and safety regulations and tariff structure that encourages safety, fuel economy and vehicle size in certain parameters . Even in the US, large fuel guzzling trucks have more taxes! In the UK and Europe, its outright illegal to have vehicles that dont’ conform to very stringent norms of safety, pollution control and other criteria.

      If these losers want to keep whining about taxes and what not- they are free to, but their troubles are not due to taxes, but due to lack of innovation and ability to compete.

  6. The correct conclusion is foreigners are realising India is not a viable place for investment in manufacturing. The corruption and cronyism is high, and you add Hindu nationalism and fanaticism, and you realise India is not like in any other business driven country. All India has is a large population. Indian can be a captive market, but cannot be a creative people.

    The type of investment India will receive will not be in manufacturing. India can attract Mark Zuckerberg to tie up with Ambani to make a monopoly for platforms that allow the ruling party some space for hate messaging etc. India has the right qualities for that – a large captive market with low IQ people, and you do not have to sink expensive assets.

    In any case, a BJP Hindu writer, Makarande Paranjape of JNU wrote that India works in its own way, according to dharma. Manufacturing and economy are not major concern for Hindus.

    You can see the Hindu rage in the letters here. It should convince foreigners that by and large Hindus are not a sobre people like Koreans, Vietnamese etc. They are a confused and confusing lot, with aspirations not matching capability.

    • Katwa displaying his own prejudices and inferiority complex about India and Hindus.

      Fact is India’s manufacturing – particularly Automotive sector is one of the LARGEST in the world. India manufactures the MOST 2 wheelers, the most 3 wheelers and is one of the largest truck and auto manufacturers in the world. Indian made cars are exported around the world and even to Europe and the US.
      Fact is Hindus are the leading CEOs, lawyers, doctors and creatives in every major MNC in the world – unlike Katwas who have only come to fame for blowing themselves up.
      Fact is India’s market is large and very value conscious – that’s why only top quality companies like the German car companies and Korean car companies have been able to compete successfully.
      Fact is that India’s market has enticed not just Western and Japanese companies to invest here – but most unlikely Chinese companies – especially Chinese auto companies that are eager to enter India due to its large and sophisticated market where they can offer good value products with foreign marquee brands like MG Motors.

      All these facts don’t square with the katwa musalmaan whose nations have nothing of substance to contribute to humanity and are known only for the accidental discovery of oil under their feet or the empty vaccum that lies betweek their ears.

      • ‘Fact is India’s manufacturing – particularly Automotive sector is one of the LARGEST in the world.’

        According to the Brahmin Sitaraman, India’a auto industry shrank because young people are taking Uber.

        ‘Indian made cars are exported around the world and even to Europe and the US.’

        Give me a break ! Not every one is a dumb Hindu bhakth. No car made in India will pass a collision test in Europe and US. Tata tried selling pick up trucks in Gulf, they failed, they broke down, and could not compete against Toyota and Izusu. Indian vehicles are sold in Nepal or African countries, that is all.

        ‘Fact is Hindus are the leading CEOs, lawyers, doctors and creatives in every major MNC in the world …’

        But none of those Hindus can succeed in India. When they come back, they will be like Subramaniam Swamy or Jayant Sinha, garlanding rapists and lynchers.

        ‘Fact is India’s market is large and very value conscious …’

        Indeed it is large. But it is not quality conscious. It is ideal for Zukcerberg to peddle fake news, he knows there are 1 billion dumb Hindus.

        ‘Fact is that India’s market has enticed not just Western and Japanese companies to invest here – but most unlikely Chinese companies – especially Chinese auto companies that are eager to enter India due to its large and…’

        But you want to expel the Chinese ! So you do not even known what you are writing when you boast. A typical low IQ Hindu.

        Toyota has had enough. Same with Vodafone.

        India is now leading only in Covid. That is all.

        • Why discourage indigenous automobile companies. They are trying to do things on their own and government should give them tax breaks for R&D. Government should also encourage them with lesser taxes instead of foreign companies. Over time they will build quality and get innovative. We have a huge market now for them to sell.

          Chinese and especially Japanese encouraged their own indigenous companies while protecting them from foreign companies entering their markets at same time ensuring competition within their indigenous companies. With time, they caught up with Western companies and you know the story of the rise of East Asian economies since last 30 years…initially their products were cheaper due to lower labour costs but subsequently they climbed up in quality even with higher labour costs due to innovation in manufacturing and design.

      • Hindus like to migrate to Western countries and settle there to escape from India. That is the truth. They have migrated in huge numbers and have taken up many jobs in Western companies.

        The West esp USA does not have enough of a population that studies STEM to sustain the research and innovation they produce. They need workers to implement those innovative ideas and also to maintain their old products. india’s huge pool of engineers satisfy that need.

        This is not the same with Chinese or Koreans (or Japanese earlier) . They have built their own companies. They have moved from manufacturing to design to innovation. Of course they are employing Indian engineers now but over last 30 years they built it all up by themselves.

        • That is correct. Indians are not able to perform within India. Their elite can migrate and perform under other people’s governance. But they feel they are not accepted, so they yearn for an India that is developed, to bolster their self esteem. Hindus in particular have this problem and they gravitate to Hindutva, and imagine Modi has put Hindus and India on the world map.

      • Advani coined the slogan ‘garv say kaho hum Hindu hain’.

        It means Hindus were ashamed to be Hindus. You cannot imagine a Muslim, Christian or Sikh leader coming out with such a slogan.

        So who has an inferiority complex ?

        Who has to fabricate history ? And why ? Because you feel you have no achievements and you feel inferior.

        Why is a majority of 85% constantly fighting with the minorities ? Because it has an inferiority complex.

        And if you have the kind of beliefs and practices you have, you are bound to have an inferiority complex.

        May I suggest what Ambedkar suggested to overcome your Hindu inferiority complex ? Convert !

  7. So how are other car manufacturers like suzuki and hyundai surviving?
    Ford lost India because of their crappy cars. Even in US people go for japanese or Korean brands. There is no resale value for Ford cars

  8. And yet we have newer companies like Kia and Nissan increasing their production manifold ! Toyota failed after Innova. That is the only car which drives its sales ! Also, why does the article not update the content based on recent tweets by the President of Kirloskar and the Heavy Industries minister himself?

  9. We had experienced, India before Mr. Modi and after Mr. Modi. Modi is the Best PM . First of all respect our PM. Think of future India. No scam no terrorists.

    • Demonetisation was the biggest scam. There is Rafale scam. PM Cares scam.

      His degree was fake !

      You are obviously a Hindu with a low IQ.

    • It is not about Modi. He cannot be a superman.

      Make in India is about setting manufacturing in India that is all. Manufacturers will come here only to sell their products in our market.
      They will export from countries where they get best input efficiency and quality labour.

  10. It’s good these companies selling third grade rejected products to us at rates higher than anywhere else. Be their safety features or especially after purchase services the customer is at their mercy. They don’t have genuine spare parts Plus the rates uff. With coming of new players like kia etc these people were feeling heat and why should government reduce taxes when the company increases the rates every now and then. It’s a golden opportunity for our automobile makers to attract a wide range of customers with their improved quality and service

    • You are putting up the usual show of Hindu false pride.

      Toyota is a brand that got there by diligent work over years. Hindus can learn how to do that instead of producing fake patriots, fake degrees, fake quality….

  11. Ulta chor kotwal ko daatey………..why can they not admit that they have not succeeded in building cars that the Indian middle class like……..Both Suzuki and Hyundai have succeeded because they have designed and built cars based on Indian customers feedback!!!

  12. For Ford one can say they tried hard but market didn’t support them but Toyota never introduced any international models in any segments. And when it did introduced India special models, Etios, they were very ugly. Even yaris was launched so late when internationally it was selling for years. Toyota even has a compact suv that is doing so well internationally and in India compact suv segment is doing very well so, a+b=c, but they never introduced RAV4 in India.

  13. Toyota itself should give a serious thought on selling over priced vehicles. They increase price of their only saleable cars, Innova and Fortuner at their whim and expect government to reduce taxes. Moreover, their pricing is such that people should end up buying the top-end model. For ex- Innova doesn’t have automatic climate control in its bottom two variants which are priced around 20lacs… Seriously, such basic feature is lacking in a 20lac car??? Idiots.

  14. Not to contest the point that taxes should be lowered – most of Europe taxes private cars equally heavily. But no one seems to be walking away from Europe. What really should be done is bring import duties down to same levels as effective tax on domestic production. We’ll then know, for sure, if local taxes are the problem or something else.

  15. They are not only company paying taxes.
    Many new companies are expanding for ex.
    It’s new company selling cars efficiently.
    Reality is that Toyota is not performing good in Indian markets and making lame excuses.
    Toyota don’t have a single model in comparison of Tata nexon despite being in top 5 global companies.

    If you don’t want to pay taxes than leave Indian market

    • On one hand, BJP Hindus boast about FDI and how people are going to leave China and come to India.

      The moment a foreign company complains, out comes your false Hindu pride and rage.

      All foreign companies should exit India, and let Hindus shine with Fake in India. After all Hindus say they are the vishwa guru.

      • Katwa doesn’t realize that KIA motors just sold more than 1 lakh vehicles in a year all by themselves in India after just 2 years of entry ?? Musalmaan losers have no auto sector and try to point to India despite the fact that India and Hindus are growing faster because of this Govt’s focus on ease of doing business and unifying tax structures.

        Katwa doesn’t realize that even Chinese companies are moving cell manufacturing to India – because its cheaper to do so compared to China! That’s why Xiaomi and others escaped the bans unlike Alibaba and TikTok.

        • Even after a beating, you want to touch the feet of the Chinese.

          The Chinese are coming, they know your Hindu psychology – put some factory in Gujarat and take Arunachal !

        • Xiaomi is doing assembly here not really manufacturing. Same for other phone companies. If they did not manufacture (or assemble) here they will be subject to high duties and their phone prices will be obviously costlier.

          We lack design and manufacturing skills in electronics, telecom and computers across the entire component chain. China has developed it over 25 years. Earlier it was Japan, Korea and Taiwan.

          Alibaba and Tiktok are software not hardware.

          • Very good analysis. Mazo is an empty Hindutva brained vessel. When some companies relocated from China, they did not come to India. India does not have an educated work force, it is mired in corruption, casteism and communalism. Its international image has slipped, people gave Modi the benefit of the doubt in the first term, but not any more.

  16. But after that vikram kirloskar clarified that they want to invest 2000 crores in electric Components and technology.. why are you not mentioning it in this big article ?

    • That is because they are happy to put aside facts to make their article look popular among readers. A Business move that is expected..

  17. Toyotas indian chairman said they are investing 2000 crores within 12th months and the article seems to be a propaganda I guess

  18. All corporates look for steady growth graphs alone. Their managers are not taught about sustainable eco-friendly growth at all. They are not concerned about social impact of robotic production in their factories. How many jobs will they create in their ultra-modern plants – a very few. They have already successfully killed local repair & recycle industry by making their spare parts not available outside of their authorised dealer workshops.
    No product, however good, will survive in the size of a country like India unless it’s road side repair infrastructure is not available.
    Buying a costly product initially is not the problem for Indians – banks provide the loan. It’s subsequent ease of maintaince is the real issues, which these business management school trained guys refuse to understand.

  19. You want companies like Toyota, GM, Ford, VW, Skoda doing well in India, and naturally invest more? Bring in strict quality and safety controls, which then would mean, Maruti, hyundai increasing prices to meet the quality requirements and market share distributed evenly amongst all players.

  20. There are other aspects too. For example, there is no tax incentive or depreciation benefits for salaried class which is a very important segment of car buyers. While businessmen can afford to buy a new car within 3-5 years, salaried class can’t upgrade for well over a decade, often a lot more than that. This also has environmental impact due to vehicles with outdated vehicles running on our already polluted roads.

    Another aspect is many large companies don’t provide leasing option to their employees. This can go a long way in triggering new purchases and faster upgrades.

    Unfortunately, the tax payer base is so small in India, government keeps bleeding the hapless victims of taxation instead of expanding the tax base.

  21. Sirji
    Make for the export market. Taxes are high which is for the local market.
    If you can make for the export market too – it will bring the cost of per unit production down at the same price.
    No Ullu Banawing!!

  22. i would prefer toyota to publiah the prices of thier product year wise with duty structure. picture will be very clear for public and company who is taking the profit .govt or company . dont tell the base variant is different from top end model as only cosmetic changes are there. tell me the price of fortuner when launched and price today viz tax rate. Somewhere the company has to introspect itself .

  23. When one is unable to achieve success as per one’s own expectations, it is mean to start blaming the government and find excuses. Yes, there may be slowdown due to Corona pandemic but then the successful companies are subject to same taxation and pre GST taxation was much tougher.

  24. The answer is more public transports… Not more private vehicles.. A country has truly improved when the rich prefer public transport rather than private vehicles. The government is right with taxing private vehicles. There’s too many vehicles on the road already

    • Where is the government going to get money to build expensive public infrastructures ?

      Forget comparing to Europe or Japan where public transport is well developed. It is not going to happen here for next 50 years. Our population is large yet most workers are in informal sector.

      Direct and indirect tax collection is going down due to lack of demand. That is the problem right now.

  25. About 80% of taxpayers money goes to scale up the lavish expenditure of VVIPs. Then how do u expect a better tax regime. Therefore for other plannings u require more funds and it fulfill by imposing exorbitant tax on industry.

    • 68% of tax collection is to run the government itself ! Of which 7% goes in pensions 11% on defence and nearly 25% goes into interest payments. 5% on tax administration itself!
      Only 8% goes to States.

      Only about 14% of tax collection goes to capital expenditure for making our infrastructure.

  26. Hahaha, If taxes are problem then how cum maruti, Hyundai making money. People make excuses when they fail. Even Mercedes, BMW also doing good business in India.
    By the way cars consume lot of fossil fuel, they are most polluting thing on earth. It is still a luxury for majority of Indians. So high taxes are justifiable

    • Fine, but how are these taxes being utilised. Is tax payer money utilised efficiently. 20,000 crores for Central Vista, Boeings, crores spent on privileges like bungalows, drivers, cars ,security, staff etc…not just this government even previous governments also are to blame.

      Though only small proportion of people pay income tax, everybody pays indirect taxes anyway.

  27. In general I’m against taxation, especially the blighted income tax but we really need high taxes on automobiles. Especilly SUVs and other diesel vehicles need to be highly taxed. Toyota can manufacture here and export if it sees taxes are high. But attributing high taxes when the real problem is demand crunch due to covid is malicious.

  28. The answer is more public transports… Not more private vehicles.. A country has truly improved when the rich prefer public transport rather than private vehicles

  29. Central government is literally duped by Indian bureaucracy and IAS officers who have goofed up many policies of Modi government. Modi/Shah duo is still not cleaning overstuffed Indian bureaucracy. Those IAS officers are neither responsible nor answerable to their deeds. All blame goes to ministers. Modi sab supposed to rid off at least 40% of those highly corrupt fat belly officers. India will save lot of money by doing so.

  30. Tata hexa is offered at 22lk fully loaded with all the safety equipment and top notch interiors with a staggering performance. Toyota Innova being a smaller car is sold at 29lk which fails to deliver all the safety equipment and best interiors. Toyota should stop complaining as they are exploiting their customers just because of their brand name. Even today lot of customers are fooled by the Innova brand name. You guys are already started crying. Stop crying and make sensible products. Also your inability to understand customers and give the best products is your incapability to invest in Indian customers. You guys think badging your name on suzuki cars will work?? How long? Look at how much market maruti suzuki has lost to Kia and Hyundai?? Make sensible statements and stop blaming government. Start blaming with your pricing in the first place. Do you want to learn and run your company? Start learning it from Korean companies it won’t be vain. They gave the best to Indian customers. They valued the customers. They have won. You just don’t value us anymore. You have started loosing. That’s it.

  31. Absolutely wrong. Very few people in India pay direct income tax. Except salaried class almost all evade taxes. Hence government has no option but to have higher taxes on cars and bikes. Government should give tax breaks to salaried class to help them buy cars and increase taxes on cars. Brazil taxes cars even more. Toyota is unable to make vfm cars and blaming Government. Look at success ok hyundai and kia. Toyota knows it cannot compete and hence using this as an excuse. Japanese car companies have lost it to Koreans just like electronic. Sony has lost to samsung and lg.

  32. Toyota should learn how to do business.
    They are unable to compete with Hyundai, Kia and Maruthi Suzuki.
    So blaming the taxation for poor performance.

  33. Without taxing such companies how else can our parties in power continue the mostly wasteful government expenditure in our country? These overseas companies must do their bit for our national priorities.

    Without such taxes can any government afford to pay for the Y level security of starlets and Z level security of privileged families ?

  34. Toyota must leave with its overpriced range as they increased the price 2 n half time within 10 years they launch the product & try to say that they are better than others nothing else which actually they are not ?? market is consumer driven not company driven and this attitude they learnt from shitty ex.Maruti/Susuki useless ppl which they had when they came into the country, instead of bringing new people from their Global portfolio in use at Global experience in a large but immature markets like India, and this is the same mistake which Ford and General Motor dead thinking of these stupid EX maruti Executive as the Pandits of Indian market. The so-called Indian Executives are actually the reason of low quality and downfall all of Indian automobile industries rather than Taxes as these taxes has been there for last 35 to 40 years even before these companies ever came to India. I give you one simple example look at the build quality and equipment level difference in the same model by any of these companies in a country not for more than 2000 kilometres away from us they have better models they have better build quality and engine options and transmission options every damn thing is better than what is being offered to Indian customers prices are also more thats not something we should be crying over, but to get the build quality they are giving their head then we are offered. I would blame our own people working in automobile industry, because they don’t have any experience of any kind of world-class products being offered in India except sub-standard Maruti product.

    • “Taxes as these taxes has been there for last 35 to 40 years even before these companies ever came to India.” .You can sughar coat/gasbag your defence for modi government ,the fact is Modi is a disaster for India,.

      • You can bray all you want – but the fact is that India’s “automotive” sector has grown by leaps and bounds due to the current tax structure and tarrifs – Modi Govt hasn’t altered the tax structure and you are too daft to realize this because you are more interested in some mindless liberal propaganda than facts. Please educate your self if you mind can hold anything of value.

        • ….One idiot comforting the other.. touching! LOL Liberals have no facts – only latch onto the justifications of losers like themselves to justify their lives.

          • Modi used to touch Xi’s feet. He got a beating, but Xi may be bribing him to keep quiet. Xi is a very clever man, he understands the Hindu.

          • As for liberals, somehow you are unable to ignore them. Why is that ? It is because you know they speak logically and are correct, but you are not able to digest reality, you want to live in your make believe Hindu world. It is like Hindus who follows Babas. They generally have a weak mind.

      • You can vomit any kind of asinine rants about Modi – but the truth is that the only disaster in India is with the Opposition and its utter failure to even corner the Govt because of its own criminality and ineptitude . FYI – apart from GST tax rate change from 18 to 26 percent, rest of the duty structure for automobiles is completely the same as it has been since 2004 . But you don’t know that because you aren’t interested in truth and facts – only BS Modi bashing

        • Situation is different now due to demand going down since last 3 years. Covid is making it worse. There is a dire need to stimulate demand.

          Wealth distribution by social welfare schemes to poorest people or villagers will not be able to stimulate demand. The upper middle class is the one that has purchasing power to purchase the products and services from the automotive companies so more affordable prices here will help in stimulating growth.

          Governments should layoff people in it’s workforce and trim it’s spending drastically. Far too many unproductive people work there and to add to that the pensions have to be paid. Of course all such decisions will be suicide for any political party and don’t expect this to happen. They will be okay to make private businesses and private sector employees suffer. On other hand, it’s very easy to advise private companies to become more efficient.

    • As it is, it’s very hard to attract investors into India. Why think of asking them to leave. It creates bad investor sentiment. They will leave on their own anyways if conditions in India are not suitable to them so why rub salt into their wounds when we ourselves don’t have indigenous world class companies of the scale of Toyota or Suzuki.

      Anyways we are all just commenters here, we are not experts. It is government’s duty to remove any problems for investors who spend thousands of crores investing here and creating jobs. Government must look at the demand problems and work with investors to protect their investments to the extent it can.

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