Rajkot diesel engine sector gets shot in arm

The Rajkot diesel engine trade has got a new lease of life following copious rains across the nation that has created an unprecedented demand for diesel engines, especially of the Lister-Petter type used in agriculture applications.

Five years ago, the city produced at least 5 lakh pieces of diesel engines per annum. But for the last few years, it was experiencing recession in terms of production and hardly managed to produce 1 lakh-50,000 pieces registering a steep decline in revenues too.

"The trade, which was already hit hard by Chinese aggression, had to suffer even more due to lack of rain. The estimated turnover in terms of value, which ranged between Rs 450 crore and Rs 500 crore per annum before five years, suddenly slipped to Rs 150 crore per annum," said Chandrakant Patel, managing director of P M Diesel Ltd, Rajkot.

However, the scenario seems to be changing. Patel said good rains had boosted the demand for diesel engines in the domestic market.

Speaking to Business Standard, Naresh Patel, president of Rajkot Engineering Association, said, "Looking at the demand from domestic circuit itself, we expect to produce at least 2.50 lakh-2.75 lakh diesel engines from Rajkot alone. We are expecting good orders from northern states mainly Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Rajasthan."

Dayabhai Vaishnani, a diesel engine dealer, said, "The boom before five years was mainly due to exports and demand from international market, but this year it is the domestic demand, which has propelled the growth."

Of the total production, 40 per cent of the diesel engines is exported and the remaining is sold in the domestic market.

While Lister models are mainly used in areas where water tables have gone down, Petter models are for areas where water tables have come up.