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MOTORINDIA
l
January 2012
All eyes are on Delhi where the
sprawling Pragati Maidan is all set
to host the five-day Auto Expo 2012,
reckoned the second largest automo-
tive event in Asia in terms of its popu-
larity and magnitude after the Shang-
hai Show, from January 7. Having
attracted almost all the leading global
vehicle and component manufactur-
ers who have set up shop and keep
expanding their operations, India is
rated a most influential auto power
with the number of exhibitors at the
Delhi show, from 24 countries, ex-
ceeding 1,500 for the first time. The
expo will witness 50 new launches of
cars, trucks & buses, two-wheelers and other India-specific products. World
tyre majors like Michelin, Bridgestone, Pirelli, Dunlop and Continental and
prominent component manufacturers from France, Canada, Germany, Japan
and Hong Kong will have a stronger presence in the expo this time than ever
before. The other focus areas include alternative fuels, electric and hybrid
mobility, etc., with stalls exclusively devoted for the related technologies. The
exhibition venue was agog with enthusiastic booking for space going on till
the last moment.
India and China, with their resilient economy, enjoy the unique distinction
of having led the Asian recovery from the recession of 2008 that ravaged all
the countries around the world. Though most of them have managed to come
out of the crisis, several others are still reeling under the damage done. There
is still optimism among Western circles that India will re-emerge a global auto
power after weathering the current slowdown. This is based on the projection
made in the much-publicisied Automotive Mission Plan 2006-16 that the In-
dian auto sector’s contribution to GDP would almost double with its turnover
rising to $145 billion by 2016.
The latest development that has cheered both the government and industry
in India is that the growth in key infrastructural areas with a weightage of 38
per cent in the overall Index of Industrial Production has bounced back to 6.8
per cent in November after hitting a low of 0.3 per cent in October. This is
clear indication that, with comfortable foreign exchange reserves, the econo-
my is in for a major breakthrough in all industry sectors, including automo-
biles. Foreign investors are as much interested in India as in the pre-recession
period when the country’s automotive sector registered a double-digit growth
for three years in a row while the industry worldwide reported poor or stag-
nant growth. It is against this encouraging backdrop that the Auto Expo being
held in Delhi assumes special significance.
MOTORINDIA continues to be associated with Auto Expo as Media
Partner since 1986.
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Editorial
www.motorindiaonline.com
India - a world auto power
R. Natarajan, Managing Editor & Publisher
MOTORINDIA