Delivering On Promises

IN AN INDUSTRY TALK SESSION, SATYAKAM ARYA, MD & CEO AT DAIMLER INDIA COMMERCIAL VEHICLES AND CHAIRMAN OF CII, TAMIL NADU STATE COUNCIL SPEAKS TO ASHISH BHATIA ON DELIVERING ON PROMISES MADE IN A SUCCESSFUL DECADE OF INDIAN OPERATIONS.

- ASHISH BHATIA

Q. Where do you see the demand revival coming from?

A. The market slowed down because of the slowing GDP growth, and that’s now coming back on its feet. This is leading to new demand and the movement of freight, and therefore demand for trucks. The second important aspect is, that in 2019 itself, the market had started to slow down. First due to the transition to BSVI, and then due to Covid-19. So it’s been three years which is a very long period of fleets not being replaced. Now, when GDP is relatively growing healthier, there is an increased demand for the movement of goods. All the fleet owners are coming back and buying new trucks. This is one major dimension which is rolling out in front of us.

The second dimension, which we will see, going forward, and will impact the CV industry is the scrappage policy. The policy has been rolled out but as the infrastructure grows, this includes the scrappage centres and the testing centres, it will have a good impetus on the demand by way of fleet replacement. The third important dimension is regulations. After the transition to Bharat Stage VI, we are gearing up for the OBD II, safety regulations are lined up and these will also influence the industry going forward.