Auto Slowdown: Kiran Mazumdar Shaw Seeks Measures To Save Jobs In Auto Sector
We need measures that are not about saving the auto sector but about saving 50% of manufacturing jobs, says Kiran Mazumdar Shaw.
Biocon Ltd. Chairperson and Managing Director Kiran Mazumdar Shaw on Monday said measures are required to save jobs in the auto sector as the industry represents 50 percent of the manufacturing sector jobs in India.
Shaw's reaction on Twitter came after data showed auto slowdown in India extended for the tenth straight month in August.
Domestic sales of passenger vehicles fell 31.6 percent year-on-year to 196,524 units in August, according to data released by Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers. That’s the worst decline since 1997-98 when SIAM started recording data.
The industry has been seeking a GST rate cut on auto sector to 18 percent from 28 percent to help tide over the slowdown that has resulted in job losses.
About 25,000-35,000 people have lost jobs in the last year and nearly 271 car and two-wheeler showrooms shut across India as fewer Indians are buying vehicles, according to data provided by the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations.
While that may only be a fraction of the 2.5 million people employed in the 25,000-odd showrooms across India, it underscores the human cost of the slowdown, and job cuts could turn worse if it persists. BloombergQuint has already reported how the slump has promoted auto and part makers to lay off contract workers.