Auto industry wants CVs to be a part of FAME scheme: Dheeraj Hinduja

Dheeraj Hinduja, Chairman of Ashok Leyland, expects the budget to have a positive impact on the commercial vehicle industry during the current financial year. The company is set to launch a light commercial vehicle in every two months this year. In an exclusive telephonic interview with Shine Jacob, Hinduja talks about the Red Sea crisis, the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric (And Hybrid) Vehicles (FAME) scheme, and industry growth this fiscal year. Edited Excerpts:

We were expecting a formal announcement on FAME III in the budget as the interim scheme did not cover cars and commercial vehicles. What is your view on this?

From our industry’s perspective, we would very much like the government to include commercial vehicles as part of the scheme. That would continue the growth momentum in the sector, with more people adopting electric vehicles at a faster pace. It is a common demand from the whole industry to include CVs as well.

What is your take on the budget, and what impact do you think it will have on the commercial vehicle sector?
 

It seems to be a continued growth budget, focused on infrastructure and construction. That is a perfect scenario for the growth of our industry. With this type of environment that the budget has provided, we believe it will have a positive rub-on effect on the commercial vehicle industry. The growth expectation is difficult to predict at this point. At the start of the quarter, all the research houses were looking at de-growth, while we were saying that it will be positive growth.

I would say that after this quarter is done, we will have a clearer indication of how it is moving. However, the first quarter posted a growth of 10 percent. Our company’s market share remains at 31 percent, similar to last year during the first quarter. There has been no loss of market share for us. We managed to retain it, and as we move forward, we look forward to growing it. On the other hand, every alternate month, we are planning to launch a new model in the LCV sector.

The Red Sea crisis has doubled the delivery time for containers and has also affected the component market. How is it affecting you?

We have a strong risk management team, and these are factors we had considered. Therefore, the Red Sea crisis has had no impact on us. It is unfortunate what is happening in that part of the world. Going forward, hopefully, it will not affect our supply chain and production. As far as commodity prices are concerned, they continue to remain stable. Comparing the last quarter with the current quarter, they are at the same level and are expected to remain so for the second quarter as well. We will wait and see how it develops in the coming quarters. There is no impact on our overseas business either

There was a lot of focus on jobs and skills in the budget. What is your take on this paid internship program announced in the budget?

We had started the internship program in our plant in Pantnagar, which we established in 2010, in collaboration with local colleges. From what I understand, the government has left it to each corporate to see how they can contribute to this program. There is a large population of students graduating and entering the workforce, and this will support them in finding new jobs. Our support for this program continues in Pantnagar, where it is called the Blessing Scheme.