Pune Speak Up: Abki baar, buy a car?

Auto companies should do well in future...
The demand in rural area will increase or will be more than the demand in urban area because of the congestion and traffic in cities. Factors like bad roads will discourage people from buying cars in the city area. The new government has promised better roads. Cars, two wheelers or trucks need better connectivity to the cities that can facilitate travel, trade and commerce. Old cars and vehicles should be phased out. The cars should be checked for pollution and should be given six months to recondition the engine to reduce the pollution. Rural area needs different type of vehicles, which are tough on the rugged roads. Foreign companies use their established models which are not suitable for the Indian roads. For example, SUV is more suitable for the Indian conditions. The discontinued Ambassador which is an appropriate car for Indian roads with good ground clearance needs to be rejuvenated.
Arun Firodia, Chairman, Kinetic Group


Hold your horses and wait...
The increasing prices of petrol and diesel will reduce the demand of automobiles. Petrol is used by the two wheelers and cars, whereas diesel is used mostly by commercial vehicles. Diesel cars have been in production so the prices will increase with the increased use of petrol and diesel. We need to wait for some more days or weeks to judge if the increase or decrease of the sale of cars is real. Last month showed very good sale but it is to early to predict if the auto industry is on a revival path. There could be ups and downs in the demands. To actually see the changes we need to get in contact with the suppliers of the auto parts. If the supply is good then we can hope for a revival. Excise duty benefits is the factor for the June growth in sales, reason might be that there is no fear in the mind of the producers which was there earlier.
SK Jain, President, MCCIA & MD, Synergy Emulsifuel


The revival path is too long...
Car sales have increased over the past few months to a certain extent. It is showing a positive move now but we do not know what is there for the future. Even though there has been an increase in the sale, there are many things that we need to cover. For the past two years we have seen a positive growth and it can remain that way for the coming years as well. It is on a revival path but we'll have to say that the path is too long. The producers are happy with the decision regarding the excise duty which is certainly a positive move. If it increases, then it will show different results altogether. For now it is showing good results. And we can hope to continue the same with some more improvements.
Shirish Kulkarni, Chairman, DSK Toyota


Double digit growth only for luxury cars...
What is being portrayed as a double digit growth, are by those companies, who are in the luxury car segment. In the ordinary cars segment, the way sales figures are going, I dont think they are on a revival path. The UPA government has given SOPS to auto industry in the past for its revival, but it has failed to lift the industry so far. When a consumer wants to buy a car he looks at the price of the car and if it fits his/hers budget, not how much excise duty is added to the price. We are saying that car market is looking up because the NDA government has extended the excise duty benefits, but let the budget be announced and the whole scenario will change. The economic measures that will be announced by government will be devoid of logic and at the end the citizens will face hardships. The auto industry has reached a saturation point.
Zubin Kabraji, Regional Director (Pune), Indo-German Chamber of Commerce


Diesel car sales have gone up...
The upward trend shown in the auto mobile industry is very good in the June month, which is a revival sign. Prices of petrol and diesel vary a lot because of the usage. Majority of Vehicles use petrol and diesel is used mainly for electricity generation. Maharashtra is the most expensive of all states. It has about 10% more price compared to other states. The diesel usage in the industry is gone down for electricity generation, due to good monsoon for last two years. It has made diesel cheaper than petrol now, with over 20% difference in the prices. Which is why people are more preferring to buy diesel cars. This has lead to increase in sale of diesel vehicles in the market.
Ali Daruwalla, Spokesperson, Petrol Dealers Association, Pune