ABSTRACT
India has a vast and intricate road network utilized predominantly for the transportation of goods and passengers. As per NHAI which is National Highways Authority of India, 65 percent of cargo and freight and 80 percent of passenger traffic is carried on the roads. Vehicles used to transport cargo or passengers who pay are called as commercial vehicles. Commercial vehicles are classified as LCVs and M and HCVs which stands for medium and heavy commercial vehicles. The LCVs are those vehicles that have a GVW which is gross vehicle weight of not more than 6 Tonnes and for M and HCVs, the GVW is more than 6 Tonnes, between the two, 60percent of CV sales is in LCVs and for M and HCVs it is 40 percent. In the passenger segment, most state governments provide public transportation services. Besides, there are several private players in the segment. The cargo segment is significantly dominated by private players. Both domestic and international makers play a vital role in this industry over the decades. Due to several updates and up-gradation of technology, the vehicle makers have become more competitive among the markets with the product innovations and efficient operations. The international players in the Indian markets have world class technology and superior engines. Despite this, the Indian makers, especially Tata Motors & Ashok Leyland always hold the top place in the market share as well as in the segment sales. Indian makers are very conscious about the needs of the Indian customers and the Indian road conditions which results in higher reliability and serviceable products with lower operating costs. In this paper, we are discussing only the M and HCV sector and aims to understand what makes the commercial vehicle makers, especially Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland more reliable and competitive than the others in the Indian market.
