Automobile manufacturer Volkswagen Group India on Wednesday
said that it has received a notice from the government over the alleged charges of manipulating emission norms in India, as it has done in the US.
The company said that it will respond to the notice issued by the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) by November 30, 2015.
Earlier, the government authorised the ARAI to conduct an investigation into the matter. The ARAI is a research association formed between the automotive industry and the ministry of heavy industries.
Subsequently, a high-level team headed by the top brass of the Pune-based ARAI submitted its preliminary findings to the government on September 30.
According to the company, its representatives had met with government and ARAI officials on October 29.
"It was agreed with the government that Volkswagen Group India will present its results from the evaluations regarding the diesel engine emissions topic by the end of November 2015," the company said in a statement.
"The next steps would depend on the findings from these evaluations. Volkswagen Group India will continue to fully co-operate with the government in this matter."
The development comes after the automobile manufacturer was caught fudging emission data of its diesel powered cars to bypass strict emission norms in the US.
The fudging scandal began unfolding in the last week of September, when the European car giant said it had used a software in the US to provide false emission test results.
The company said its vehicles with 1.6- and 2.0-litre diesel engines are "affected by the manipulations that are being talked about."
The company's Jetta, Beetle, Golf and Audi A3 models in the US from 2009 to 2015, and the Passat from 2014-15, were fitted with the devices which produced doctored results.
Several countries around the world and Europe have started their own inquiry to find out whether the fudging practice also took place there.
