Wednesday, April 15, 2020
By Kamal Swami
Auto Industry Welcomes Prime Minister’s Move To Extend Lockdown
Despite staying at home and retaining social distance has helped in controlling the dangerous effects of the COVID-19, yet the threat is not over, and to further control the spread of virus honorable Prime Minister. Narendra Modi has extended the duration of lockdown till May 3, 2020. The decision by the Prime Minister has been welcomed by all the segments of society, however at the same time all are also concerned about the heavy losses different businesses are incurring due to the shutdown of the operations. But, interestingly after an address by the Prime Minister on April 14, 2020, the losses have become the secondary matter of concern for all the business operators and the safety of their employees and the general public are now their prime concern.
Commenting on the decision, Mr. Pawan Goenka, Managing Director, Mahindra & Mahindra tweeted, "I am sure a difficult decision to extend lockdown to May 3rd but I believe the right decision. It is up to all of us to ensure that the PM does not have to extend it further. Please follow all the rules and discipline of lockdown. Stay Safe."
It would be interesting to know that decision of the lockdown has been followed strictly by the entire auto industry and all of them are following the rules with full sincerity and confident that the sales will boost-up after the lockdown. However, they also expect the relief package or a policy to support their interests from the government. Taking a step towards the post lockdown situation, the Federation of Automotive Dealers Associations (FADA) has written to the Prime Minister requesting the reduction in GST rates and ESCI support for salary payment to the employees. The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) has already said that the whole industry is incurring the loss of Rs. 2300 crore every day and is believed to undergo a loss of more than 30% in the sales after lockdown. Moreover, as the society has upgraded its vehicles according to BS6 emission norms, most of the manufacturers are having the huge stock of existing BS-IV vehicles which will be required to sale out first at discounted rates.
Speaking on the existing situation Dr. Pawan Munjal, Chairman Hero MotoCorp said, "I support the honorable Prime Minister's move to extend the lockdown till May 3rd, with the topmost priority being the safety and wellbeing of the citizens of our country. The decision to allow graded relaxation and partial opening of certain areas from April 21 that show improvement is also welcome. While continuing to play its role in supporting the government through various means and measures, Corporate India looks forward to a suitable stimulus package from the government that will give a boost to our economy."
