All stories by Deepak Patel
Don't see growth in small car segment this fiscal year: R C Bhargava
Rediff.com27 Apr 2023Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL) does not anticipate growth in the small car segment because people continue to find these vehicles unaffordable, chairman R C Bhargava said on Wednesday. He said the market had clearly shifted towards the sport utility vehicle (SUV) segment and the company will go in the same direction. The domestic sales of utility vehicles jumped in India by 34.54 per cent to about 2 million units in FY23.
Pilot suspensions rose 2x in 2022 for violating safety norms: DGCA
Rediff.com19 Apr 2023The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) suspended the licences of 92 pilots in 2022 for violating safety norms, which was more than double the 2021 figure. The number of scheduled flights (domestic and international) in India increased by 32.74 per cent to 1.3 million in 2022, according to data from aviation analytics firm Cirium. A DGCA official stated that the minimum period of licence suspension in 2022 was one month and the maximum was three years.
Air India, SpiceJet, and Go First lost domestic market share in Q4FY23
Rediff.com19 Apr 2023Indian carriers transported 12.8 million domestic passengers in March 2023, a year-on-year growth of 21.41 per cent. India's largest carrier IndiGo shored up its domestic market share from 53.8 per cent in Q4 of FY22 to 55.7 per cent in Q4 of FY23, according to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) data released on Monday.
Two-wheeler exports from India skid nearly 18% in FY23
Rediff.com14 Apr 2023Two-wheeler exports from India fell by 17.8 per cent to 3.65 million units in 2022-23 (FY23), according to data released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (Siam) on Thursday. This decline is due to a rise in global inflation and the weakening of economies and currencies in key export markets of Africa, Latin America (LatAm), and South Asia. In contrast to FY23, two-wheeler exports from India jumped 35.4 per cent to 4.44 million units in 2021-22 (FY22).
Mercedes-Benz's India sales jump 36% in FY23; female customer base doubles
Rediff.com12 Apr 2023Sales of Mercedes-Benz in the country have jumped by 36.67 per cent to 16,497 units in 2022-23 amid high demand for its top-end vehicles, according to its India MD & CEO Santosh Iyer. "This is the highest-ever sales recorded by the company in any financial year," he stated. In the luxury car segment of India, Mercedes-Benz is the market leader with about a 42 per cent share.
Akasa's Focus: Connecting Metros To Non-Metros
Rediff.com1 Apr 2023'While we do some metro-to-metro flying, we have got a lot of metro-to-non-metro cities like Bengaluru-Visakhapatnam, Bengaluru-Bhubaneswar, Bengaluru-Guwahati and Bengaluru-Kochi.'
Honda's EV roadmap: Dedicated factory, first two e-scooter models in a year
Rediff.com30 Mar 2023Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI), India's second-largest two-wheeler maker, on Wednesday revealed its electric vehicle (EV) roadmap, which includes setting up a dedicated EV factory, launching the first two EVs in 2023-24, and establishing 6,000 battery exchange points in the country. HMSI plans to establish a specialised unit for the manufacturing of electric vehicles (EVs), named 'Factory E', at its Narsapura plant located in Karnataka. Factory E will be created by converting an existing production line that currently manufactures internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, said Atsushi Ogata, HMSI managing director and chief executive officer.
Labour pains could hit Hyundai's buyout of GM's Talegaon plant
Rediff.com29 Mar 2023Legal battles initiated by 1,000-odd former employees of the Talegaon plant continue to present a challenge for the acquisition process.
Traffic Surges; Airlines Grapple With Grounded Planes
Rediff.com21 Mar 2023If all 102 grounded planes could fly, there will theoretically be 400 more Delhi-Mumbai flights every day.
Go First may take legal action against Pratt & Whitney over engine issues
Rediff.com10 Mar 2023Indian airline Go First is considering legal action against Pratt and Whitney (PW) for failing to provide compensation after March 2020 for planes grounded due to engine supply delays, sources said on Thursday. About 90 per cent of the airline's fleet of aircraft uses PW engines. About 24 of the airline's 55 planes are grounded due to delays in engine supply by PW.
42% Cars Sold In 2022 Were White
Rediff.com6 Mar 2023White is easy to maintain, looks brighter than other colours over a longer period, is the least commonly rejected colour among family members, has high resale value, provides better safety at night, absorbs less heat in the summer season, makes small cars look bigger, and is not considered inauspicious.
Why Air India CCTO Deleted LinkedIn Post
Rediff.com27 Feb 2023In a LinkedIn post on Wednesday, February 15, night, Nipun Aggarwal had said Air India, in addition to the order of 470 planes, had the option to purchase 370 aircraft from Airbus and Boeing.
Maruti share in Suzuki revenue jumps to 40.9% in April-Dec
Rediff.com8 Feb 2023Maruti Suzuki's contribution to the sales revenue of its Japanese parent, Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC), has touched the highest-ever figure during April-December of FY23. According to SMC's results declared on Tuesday, Maruti's share in its global revenues jumped from 33.42 per cent in April-December of FY22 to 40.93 per cent in the corresponding period of FY23.
Maruti to roll out first EV next fiscal, five more by FY30
Rediff.com27 Jan 2023Maruti will launch its first electric vehicle (EV) in the next financial year (FY24), and will roll out six EVs in the country by FY30, the automaker's parent firm Suzuki said on Thursday.
Tata Motors turns the corner: Swings into profit after 7 quarters
Rediff.com26 Jan 2023After clocking losses for seven straight quarters, Tata Motors on Wednesday posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 3,043 crore in the third quarter (Q3) of 2022-23. This came on the back of a strong order book, better semiconductor chip supply, tempered commodity prices, and a better product mix. "We remain cautiously optimistic about the demand situation, notwithstanding the global uncertainty.
Honda Motorcycle set to join two-wheeler EV race by March next year
Rediff.com24 Jan 2023Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI), the country's second-largest two-wheeler manufacturer, is planning to launch its first electric vehicle (EV) here by March next year, said CEO & MD Atsushi Ogata on Monday. The company would also enter the low-end motorcycle market in March by launching a 100cc engine bike at a price that will "positively shock" customers, he said while speaking with reporters, after launching the Activa with Honda Smart Key. HMSI's first EV, an electric scooter, will have a fixed battery and the second model will have two swappable batteries, Ogata explained.
Only IndiGo, Vistara fly more than pre-Covid peak in 2022
Rediff.com24 Jan 2023IndiGo carried 69.09 million passengers last year, compared to 67.9 million in 2019.
Maruti Suzuki underestimated SUV segment's growth
Rediff.com13 Jan 2023According to Siam data, Indian auto companies sold 982,456 units of utility vehicles in the first half of FY23, a 50.29 per cent growth over the corresponding period last year.
'It may take time for EV to become your only car'
Rediff.com12 Jan 2023'If it is your second car (electric vehicle), you typically keep it for travel within the city.' 'And the first car (internal combustion engine-run vehicles) can then be used to travel to some other cities.'
Mercedes To Drive 10 New Models In 2023
Rediff.com10 Jan 2023'Since we have a long waiting period, customers will be able to see cars for the next one year which are going to be produced and block (book) them.' 'So, if there is a wedding or a birthday in October, they can already check its availability in that month and block it.'