Automobile industry in India

The automotive industry in India is one of the largest in the world with an annual production of 23.96 million vehicles in FY (fiscal year) 2015–16, following a growth of 2.57 per cent over the last year. The automobile industry accounts for 7.1 per cent of the country's gross domestic product (GDP). The Two Wheelers segment, with 81 per cent market share, is the leader of the Indian Automobile market, owing to a growing middle class and a young population. Moreover, the growing interest of companies in exploring the rural markets further aided the growth of the sector. The overall Passenger Vehicle (PV) segment has 13 per cent market share.

India is also a prominent auto exporter and has strong export growth expectations for the near future. In FY 2014–15, automobile exports grew by 15 per cent over the last year. In addition, several initiatives by the Government of India and the major automobile players in the Indian market are expected to make India a leader in the Two Wheeler (2W) and Four Wheeler (4W) market in the world by 2020.

The industry produced a total 14.25 million vehicles including PVs, commercial vehicles (CVs), three wheelers (3W) and 2W in April–October 2015, as against 13.83 in April–October 2014, registering a marginal growth of 3.07 per cent, year-to-year.

The sales of PVs grew by 8.51 per cent in April–October 2015 over the same period in the previous year. The overall CVs segment registered a growth of 8.02 per cent in April–October 2015 as compared to same period last year. Medium and Heavy Commercial Vehicles (M&HCVs) registered very strong growth of 32.3 per cent while sales of Light Commercial Vehicles (LCVs) declined by 5.24 per cent during April–October 2015, year-to-year.

In April–October 2015, overall automobile exports grew by 5.78 per cent. PVs, CVs, 3Ws and 2Ws registered growth of 6.34 per cent, 17.95 per cent, 18.59 per cent and 3.22 per cent, respectively, in April–October 2015 over April–October 2014.

In order to keep up with the growing demand, several auto makers have started investing heavily in various segments of the industry during the last few months. The industry has attracted foreign direct investment (FDI) worth US$13.48 billion during the period April 2000 to June 2015, according to data released by Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP).

Some of the major investments and developments in the automobile sector in India are as follows:

The Government of India encourages foreign investment in the automobile sector and allows 100 per cent FDI under the automatic route.

Some of the major initiatives taken by the Government of India are:

In 1897, the first car ran on an Indian road. Through the 1930s, cars were imports only, and in small numbers.

An embryonic automotive industry emerged in India in the 1940s. Hindustan Motors was launched in 1942, long-time competitor Premier in 1944, building Chrysler, Dodge, and Fiat products respectively.Mahindra & Mahindra was established by two brothers in 1945, and began assembly of Jeep CJ-3A utility vehicles. Following independence in 1947, the Government of India and the private sector launched efforts to create an automotive-component manufacturing industry to supply to the automobile industry. In 1953, an import substitution programme was launched, and the import of fully built-up cars began to be restricted.

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