A Note from the Ceo
ThegovernmenTandTheTwo-wheeler
industryareclearlynotonthesamepageso
farasthefuelpolicyisconcerned.Two-wheeler
manufacturershaveinvestedthousandsof
croresinsettingupworld-classmanufacturing
systemsandtodaymanufactureproducts
comparablewiththebestintheworldbothin
numbersandquality.exportsarealsosizeable
andrising.Significantly,theyhavegenerateda
hugeamountofemploymentnotonlyin
manufacturingbutalsoinserviceand
maintenance.withBharatvI, theywillbe
producingthebestthatfossilfuelscan
currentlydeliverintermsofemission.Canall
thisbeputinjeopardy?
on theotherhand,Indiahassomeofthe
mostpollutedcitiesintheworldandthe
governmentisundergreatpressuretoimprove
thequalityofairinourbigcities.
Whatisthesolution?
1)Boththeindustryandthegovernment
shouldtalk.Currently,theyaretalkingateach
otherandnottoeachother.Citiesthatarethe
mostpolluted,forexample,delhiandmumbai,
canbefirsttakenupforaction.
2)Somescrappagepolicyisa mustandthis
shouldapplyacrosstheboardtoallvehicles,
whethertwo-wheelers,four-wheelersor
commercialvehicles.
3)realistic deadlines need to be set keeping in
mind the need for charging infrastructure
which is absent today.4) India has no reserves of cobalt or lithium.
This will mean imports. Setting up
manufacturing units for batteries will also
take time.
5) Finally, even with duty concessions, will the
pricing of electric vehicles be attractive enough
for the buyer?
Buildinga world-beatertwo-wheeler
industryisnoteasy.ourcompanieshave
achievedthis.letusnotthrowit away.
addingtotheagonycreatedbythechoiceof
fuelisthesuddenslumpindemandacrossthe
boardfortheautoindustry.a number of
factorsareresponsiblebutletusnotforget
thattheheavyrateoftaxationisoneofthem.
even generally the economy is not in the pink
of health and the Finance Bill has failed to kick-
startit.Theautosectoraccountsfora
staggering 49 percentofourmanufacturing
gdP and no government can afford to ignore
its welfare.
Foruspublishers,therudeshockisthe
impositionofcustomsdutyonnewsprint
andlwC paper. For an industry already facing
a challenging time, this duty definitely needs
a relook.
on a different note, Bike India is now 14
yearsold.SuchisourpenetrationthatBike
Indiaaccountsformorethan 80 percentofthe
bikemagazinereadermarket.we thank all our
stakeholders and look forward to their support
in the future.Hoshang S.
Billimoria
ceo10 Bike India August 2019 http://www.bikeindia.in