Industry body Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers has sought government intervention to help the auto sector transition to Bharat Stage VI emission norms.
The prospect of stopping manufacture and sale of BS-IV vehicles overnight poses a “monumental” challenge, said SIAM at the annual convention of Automotive Component Manufacturers Association in New Delhi on Friday.
Original equipment and auto component manufacturers are on track to meet the BS-VI emission norms, said SIAM President Rajan Wadhera at the ACMA event, but expressed concern over availability of BS-VI fuel across India.
"The transition is very abrupt on March 31, both manufacturing and sales (of BS-IV vehicles) stop. This has never ever happened anywhere in the world," Wadhera said.
It is extremely difficult to predict sales and plan inventories in such a way to have zero inventory at the end of March, he said. "This itself is giving speculation and confusion to customers and resulting in huge loss for the entire auto fraternity.”
Turning to Minister of State for Finance Anurag Thakur and MoS Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Arjun Ram Meghwal, Wadhera said, "So sir, we request you to please look at this, and from time to time over the next few weeks we shall interact with you to give us a a possible solution to this very big complex thing which is coming."
The Supreme Court had last year ruled that no BS IV vehicle shall be sold across the country with effect from Apr. 1, 2020.
Terming the transition as "a very monumental phase for the entire auto industry", the SIAM President said, "All eyes are on us. Together we have to ensure that we execute this transition very well." A lot of investment and hard work has already been put in by both OEMs and suppliers, he added.
Wadhera also asked the government to take a swift decision on GST rate cut for auto sector ahead of the festive season. "We have an issue at hand... 15 to 20 percent of the sales happen during this festive time. The revival of sentiment is very important," he said.
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