R.C.Bhargava narrates Maruti Suzuki’s Gujarat story(Video)



Gandhinagar, 11 January 2013

Speaking at the inaugural function of Vibrant Gujarat Business Summit, the Suzuki India chief R.C.Bhargava praised the approach of Gujarat government towards the investors. Bhargava said the work on Maruti’s Gujarat plant will kick off by March this year and cars will be manufactured in 2015-16.

Narrating his Gujarat experience in his speech, Bhargava said, “Gujarat is now going to be our second home. Maruti started on a very modest scale in 1981 with an object of making a 100000 cars a year. A group prospered and in 2011 when we were making almost 1.2 million cars, we realized that we would run out of the capacities and space to expand in Haryana when our sixth plant got commissioned towards the end of 2013. Business parameters have also changed. We were now looking at exporting cars on a much bigger scale. We became Suzuki’s hub for making small cars or all of Europe, Africa, South America and South East Asia, and we had to be competitive to be successful in the export markets. Domestic competition also increased and therefore we needed to cut down on costs.”

He further said, “we looked around and it seemed to us that all that we put hear and learn from the records that Gujarat would be a better state than anyone else in the country. We contacted the govt of Gujarat, the response was instantaneous. We came to Gandhinagar and we had privilege of meeting Mr. Modi and his team and that meeting convinced us that all that we had heard about Gujarat, the reality was in fact much better than what people were talking about. The government immediately took up all the requirements which a big company like Maruti would need. Infra requirements, plans, meticulous details, people were given responsibilities and the work started. Towards of middle of 2012 we signed the MoU.”

He said, “we will be starting work on the project towards the end of first quarter, that’s before March this year, we would producing cars two and half years later in 2015-16. We believe that we have made the best possible choice, and that the second home for us will be very very productive.”