Bajaj Auto is seriously considering to move out Chetak electric scooter’s production from Pune factory due to pending subsidies worth Rs 75 Crore
Bajaj Auto is likely to move out the production of Chetak electric scooter from Maharashtra, claims a Hindu Businessline report. It has been learnt that the state of Maharashtra has not yet released the pending subsidies of Rs 75 Crore. In addition, the recent government order restricting new auto-rickshaw permits is also said to be one of the most contentious issues. Reportedly, the homegrown automaker is planning to shift the EV production to its Pantnagar factory in Uttarakhand while also considering other states such as Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
Recently, Rajiv Bajaj, Managing Director of Bajaj Auto, raised some serious issues regarding Maharashtra’s EV policy while also calling it a “massive failure” at the same time. He highlighted the inconsistencies in the state’s EV policy. The company has already made an investment of Rs 750 crore in Pune to develop the EV ecosystem while another 250 crore were poured in through local vendors.
Bajaj Auto will further invest 420 crore in the EV development and hence any change could significantly impact Maharashtra. The industry insiders state that such a move by the brand could affect the state’s position as one of the leading automotive hubs in India. In particular, the Pune–Pimpri-Chinchwad region, which is widely considered as the country’s manufacturing backbone for automobiles, could be severely impacted.
Recently, Maharashtra’s transport department issued an order which restricted issuing of new auto-rickshaw permits due to market saturation. Bajaj Auto has more than 87 percent market share in the electric three-wheeler segment in the state and nearly 15–17 percent of its overall volumes in India comes from Maharashtra. Hence, such a move by the state’s transport department could significantly impact the brand’s sales strategy.
The state government, however, downplayed this issue along with the pending subsidy matter. Senior IAS and Managing director of the Maharashtra State Power Generation Company, P Anabalagan, said that the subsidy matter is relatively minor from a budget standpoint and emphasised that the government remains engaged with the company to resolve concerns.
Amidst all this turmoil, Bajaj Auto is considering to redirect the 420 crore investment earmarked for EV ecosystem to its production facility in Pant Nagar, Uttarakhand. As per reports, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu have begun initial discussions with the automaker to attract investment. In fact, Bajaj Auto is also looking at these states with more hope due to their clear EV policy and support.
