PINAKI MAJUMDAR
Jamshedpur, Aug 3: The ancillary units of Tata Motors based at Adityapur in adjoining Seraikela- Kharsawan district look forward to get good orders from the automobile major which has set a target of manufacturing around 10,000 heavy commercial vehicles in the month of August.
The heavy commercial vehicles include trucks, trailers, tippers, and other multi-axle vehicles.
Sources in Tata Motors Workers Union revealed that the automobile giant has just doubled the production target to 10,000 in August.
July month’s target was around 5,000 heavy commercial vehicles.
” With improvement in Covid situation and relaxation in the state’s lockdown regulations the auto major could increase the monthly target in August, which is a good sign. This would benefit over 700 – odd ancillary units in Adityapur industry hub as would provide engagement for workers, who were sitting idle due to want of work, ” said a senior functionary of Tata Motors Workers Union.
Confirming this president of Adityapur Small Industries Association ( ASIA ) Under Agarwal said Tata Motors has set a higher target of manufacturing around 10,000 vehicles in August.
” This will help ancillary units to increase shifts and engage manpower accordingly. Most industrial units in Adityapur had resorted to five days a week due to the pandemic, ” said Agarwal.
He also confirmed that currently there are no closed units at the Adityapur industrial area, the state’s largest industrial hub.
There are over 700 small, medium and large ancillary units at Adityapur that supply auto components to Tata Motors.
The company remained shut for almost two months last year ever since the Covid-19 induced lockdown was announced in March which had severely impacted its ancillaries at Adityapur.
Production resumed in May but in absence of orders, the company was facing a tough time.
Last year in October the automobile major had announced that it had recorded a 103 per cent jump in bookings and 90 per cent rise in passenger vehicles’ retail, compared with the same period in 2019.
Production went smoothly until March this year. But, the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic again severely impacted production due to lack of orders between March and June.
The company was also prompted to announce a series of block closures in phases between April and July.
Gurudas Ray, an industry expert said, “The going in recent times, however, has been as tough for Tata Motors as it has been for other major players in the Indian automobile industry due to the pandemic. The Covid-19 outbreak and consequent lockdown resulted in new and unprecedented challenges.”
He, however, expressed apprehensions that if the third wave is averted industry will bounce back.
