Former managing director of Maruti Suzuki India, Jagdish Khattar, passed away on Monday morning following a cardiac arrest, according to people close to him. Khattar (79), a former bureaucrat, was considered as one of the most high profile leaders of the Indian automotive industry, laying the foundation for Maruti's future growth after the government began its disinvestment in 2002 and gradually exited from its joint venture with Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC). He had joined the then Maruti Udyog Ltd in July 1993 as director (marketing) and went on to become executive director (marketing) in the next six years.
In its FIR filed recently, the CBI has named Khattar and his company Carnation Auto India Limited for allegedly causing a loss of Rs 110 crore to Punjab National Bank.
Entities like CarDekho, Cartrade and a host of other online players went live even as Carnation, former Maruti managing director Jagdish Khattar's first entrepreneurial venture, was searching for the right business model, says Ajay Modi.
Carnation Auto, a multi-brand car service initiative by ex-Maruti Suzuki chief Jagdish Khattar, on Thursday launched a servicing facility for premium cars in Gurgaon in association with Fiat Group firm Magneti Marelli.
Jagdish Khattar-promoted Carnation, a multi-brand car sales and servicing network, and the Dilip Chhabria-owned car design boutique DC Design have entered into a joint venture that will help the design studio offer its services to the mass segment at lower price points. Before this, DC's services were restricted to high net worth clients.
Carnation, the multi-brand car servicing major, has announced plans to roll out its own brand of auto spare parts by mid-2010. "We'll be launching our own brand of genuine car spare parts," said Jagdish Khattar, CMD of Carnation, at the formal launch of nine service outlets.
IT major Wipro's promoter Azim Premji is investing Rs 80 crore (Rs 800 million) to acquire a significant minority stake in a company floated by Jagdish Khattar, former managing director of Maruti Suzuki India who has recently turned entrepreneur.
It signals a major jump in the global acceptance of India as a hub for small cars, but maintaining this will require a lot more including, for starters, large production volumes.
In case of exchange, the automobile company offers the wholesale price on the old car, which can be 10-12 per cent lesser than the retail price.
The strong domestic growth for new vehicle sales during 2008-12, which witnessed a compounded annual growth rate of 14 per cent, led to an increased inventory of used cars, thanks to trade-ins.
Corporate India tempered its victory celebrations for the supposedly business-friendly Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance's landslide electoral victory by highlighting the need for immediate steps to create jobs through inclusive economic growth.
The partnership will look to expand Ford's reach in the fast-growing Indian market and improve M&M's access to global markets
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