The new 'Esteem Standard' would be launched exclusively for director general of supplies and disposal through which Union ministries and departments would buy the car, company sources said.

The approval of 'Esteem Standard' as staff car for purchases by the government departments opens new opportunities for Maruti in a domain hitherto dominated by CK Birla Group company Hindustan Motors' [Get Quote] old workhorse 'Ambassador'.

In an official memorandum, Maruti Suzuki 'Esteem' has been approved as 'official' car in the non-AC category and the purchases will be made through DGS&D.

Maruti, India's biggest carmaker, will now have institutional buyers from defence forces, paramilitary forces, police, various ministries and their departments, state government departments, public sector undertakings and nationalised banks.

The AC variant of 'Esteem' was earlier approved for the use of senior functionaries. The ex-factory price of 'Esteem Standard' will be the lowest in the category, industry observers said.                              

Maruti, which is 54.2 per cent owned by Suzuki Motor Corporation of India had launched a new-look 'Esteem' in July last year by slashing its price by Rs 40,000.

Launching the new-look 'Esteem', Maruti Udyog  managing director Jagdish Khattar explained that the strategy of competitive pricing was made possible through successful cost reduction undertaken by the company three years ago.

"Our initiatives on the new 'Esteem' are in line with Maruti's increased focus on the entry-level mid-size car market of the domestic passenger car market," he said earlier.

The new 'Esteem', which has 1300cc MPI engine, had been developed in India by the engineers of Suzuki. 'Esteem', which was launched in India about 11 years ago, is available in five variants.