The Indian automobile industry is the fourth largest in the world with an annual turnover of $100 Billion and employs 32 million people. The two-wheeler industry in India is the largest in the world.
India is also the largest tractor manufacturer and the eighth largest commercial vehicle manufacturer in the world.
BS-VI emission norms became mandatory across India. This was meant to kick start the sales for the automotive industry towards positive growth as it was predicted that a lot of people were waiting to get their hands on the BS-VI emission-norm compliant model and were hence, holding back their purchase till April 1, 2020.
This, however, was not meant to be. From 22 March 2020, the entire country was put under lockdown which meant people were no longer commuting to anywhere as, well, everywhere was closed in order to contain the spread of COVID-19 pandemic.
This also meant that vehicle dealerships, be it of two-wheelers, four-wheelers, commercial or passenger, were shut down. The same for the manufacturing plants as well as the employees were no longer coming to the production facilities.
Indian Automobile Industry Crunched into Reverse Gear
For the entire month of April 2020, Indian Automobile Industry was closed.
And as a result, April 2020 will go down in the history of the Indian automobile industry as the month with zero vehicles sold.
The reverse gear of the India auto industry came immediately after the government declared a nationwide lockdown on March 24, 2020, to contain the spread of COVID-19.
SIAM declared that the plant closure of auto original equipment manufacturers and component manufacturers will lead to a loss of INR 2,300 crore per day and a cumulatively three-week shut down of the automotive industry will translate into a total revenue loss of INR 48,300 crore.