AUTOMOBILE INDUSTRY The automobile industry in India—the tenth largest in the world with an annual production of approximately 2 million units—is expected to become one of the major global automotive industries in the coming years. A number of domestic companies produce automobiles in India and the growing presence of multinational investment, too, has led to an increase in overall growth. Following the economic reforms of 1991 the Indian automotive industry has demonstrated sustained growth as a result of increased competitiveness and relaxed restrictions. The monthly sales of passenger cars in India exceed 100,000 units In 1953, the government of India and the Indian private sector initiated manufacturing processes to help develop the automobile industry, which had emerged by the 1940s in a nascent form. Between 1970 to the economic liberalization of 1991, the automobile industry continued to grow at a slow pace due to the many government restrictions. A number of Indian manufactures appeared between 1970-1980.Japanese manufacturers entered the Indian market ultimately leading to the establishment of Maruti Udyog. A number of foreign firms initiated joint ventures with Indian companies. The Indian automotive industry has been facing new challenges due to the rapid changes taking place during the last decade. This article discusses those challenges and initiatives taken by the government to overcome them. The Indian auto industry is changing rapidly. During the last decade, many international auto manufacturers, either by themselves or in partnership with Indian companies, have started manufacturing activities in India. The ancillary industries have also grown in tandem. The quality of production in small- and medium-scale industries has improved to such an extent that they started exporting products to international manufacturers. The major breakthrough of recent years is the unveiling of "Nano" by Tata Motors during the auto expo 2007. This has received worldwide attention and proved that India can not only design an automobile of international standards but also execute the project at a much lower cost through innovative choice of components, materials, engine design etc. These developments in the auto sector have given new confidence to everyone related to the auto industry and specifically to the government which resulted in the announcement of the Auto Policy 2006-2016 by the Ministry of Heavy Industries. According to the Auto Policy, the Indian auto sector is expected to grow to US$ 216 billion by 2016 and add 2.5 million new jobs to the economy. Every year two to three million people are expected to purchase new vehicles. Several million vehicles and components are expected to be exported to both developed and developing nations. To achieve these goals, it is important that the present GDP growth rate, which is more than 8 per cent, continues to remain at the same level for the next 8-10 years. The government is also giving some concessions to the auto industry. To realize the above growth predictions, it is important to overcome various challenges the industry is facing currently. Two of the foremost challenges are the spiraling cost of fuel and the paucity of highly skilled manpower. International price of crude oil has crossed US$ 120 per barrel and is rising at an alarming rate. The forecast of market experts that the crude oil price will plateau around US$ 100 per barrel has been proved wrong. The skyrocketing crude oil price rise will affect the economic growth of most of the nations of the world including India. The prospects of India and China of becoming economic superpower will be seriously affected. Also, the rise in oil prices will impact the growth of global automotive industry. Unless the use of alternative fuels increases, it is very unlikely that the situation will change for the better. This necessarily means that more and more investments should be directed towards R&D, establishing mechanisms to translate R&D results into products and their efficient manufacturing. This will also require radical redesigning of engines. The second major challenge is the creation of highly skilled human resource required for the auto industry. Auto industry, like many other industries is facing severe shortage of skilled technical as well as managerial manpower. This challenge becomes all the more daunting because faults lie at a more fundamental level of training infrastructure and the social perception. The growth of auto industry in India will be contingent not just on domestic demand, but also equally on exports. Therefore, the present projections will become a reality if thrust is given to original research that will yield breakthrough results. These results help in addressing the current global concerns such as environment, fuel efficiency, need for alternate and renewable fuels and materials etc. This can happen only through a consortium approach where various auto companies and academic institutions work together as in the case of IT hardware industry. The consortium approach should be extended to address the trained human resource shortage as well. The government should act as a facilitator by bringing about necessary changes in the current laws that will encourage private participation. Finally, there should be mechanisms in place that will ensure that there is a balance in the pool of human resources comprising research scientists, managers, engineers, designers, technicians, and skilled and semiskilled workers. Tata Motors Limited is India's largest automobile company, with consolidated revenues of INR 1,23,133 crores (USD 27 billion) in 2010-11. It is the leader in commercial vehicles in each segment, and among the top three in passenger vehicles with winning products in the compact, midsize car and utility vehicle segments. It is the world's fourth largest truck and bus manufacturer. The company's over 25,000 employees are guided by the vision to be ''best in the manner in which we operate, best in the products we deliver, and best in our value system and ethics.'' Established in 1945, Tata Motors' presence indeed cuts across the length and breadth of India. Over 6.5 million Tata vehicles ply on Indian roads, since the first rolled out in 1954. The company's manufacturing base in India is spread across Jamshedpur (Jharkhand), Pune (Maharashtra), Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh), Pantnagar (Uttarakhand), Sanand (Gujarat) and Dharwad (Karnataka). Following a strategic alliance with Fiat in 2005, it has set up an industrial joint venture with Fiat Group Automobiles at Ranjangaon (Maharashtra) to produce both Fiat and Tata cars and Fiat powertrains. The company's dealership, sales, services and spare parts network comprises over 3,500 touch points; Tata Motors also distributes and markets Fiat branded cars in India. Tata Motors, the first company from India's engineering sector to be listed in the New York Stock Exchange (September 2004), has also emerged as an international automobile company. Through subsidiaries and associate companies, Tata Motors has operations in the UK, South Korea, Thailand, Spain and South Africa. Among them is Jaguar Land Rover, a business comprising the two iconic British brands that was acquired in 2008. JLR supports two state of the art engineering and design facilities and three manufacturing plants (Solihull, Castle Bromwich & Halewood) in the UK. In 2004, Tata Motors acquired the Daewoo Commercial Vehicles Company, South Korea's second largest truck maker. The rechristened Tata Daewoo Commercial Vehicles Company has launched several new products in the Korean market, while also exporting these products to several international markets. Today two-thirds of heavy commercial vehicle exports out of South Korea are from Tata Daewoo. In 2005, Tata Motors acquired a 21% stake in Hispano Carrocera, a reputed Spanish bus and coach manufacturer, and subsequently the remaining stake in 2009. Hispano's presence is being expanded in other markets. In 2006, Tata Motors formed a joint venture with the Brazil-based Marcopolo, a global leader in body-building for buses and coaches to manufacture fully-built buses and coaches for India and select international markets. In 2006, Tata Motors entered into joint venture with Thonburi Automotive Assembly Plant Company of Thailand to manufacture and market the company's pickup vehicles in Thailand. The new plant of Tata Motors (Thailand) has begun production of the Xenon pickup truck, with the Xenon having been launched in Thailand in 2008. Tata Motors (SA) (Proprietary) Ltd., Tata Motors' joint venture with Tata Africa Holding (Pty) Ltd., has its assembly plant in South Africa at Rosslyn, north of Pretoria, in the Gauteng province of South Africa. The plant can assemble, from semi knocked down (SKD) kits, light, medium and heavy commercial vehicles ranging from 4 - 50 tonnes. Tata Motors is also expanding its international footprint, established through exports since 1961. The company's commercial and passenger vehicles are already being marketed in several countries in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, South East Asia, South Asia, CIS, Russia and South America. It has franchisee/joint venture assembly operations in Bangladesh, Ukraine, and Senegal. The foundation of the company's growth over the last 65 years is a deep understanding of economic stimuli and customer needs, and the ability to translate them into customer-desired offerings through leading edge R&D. With over 4,500 engineers and scientists, the company's Engineering Research Centre, established in 1966, has enabled pioneering technologies and products. The company today has R&D centres in Pune, Jamshedpur, Lucknow, Dharwad in India, and in South Korea, Spain, and the UK. It was Tata Motors, which developed the first indigenously developed Light Commercial Vehicle, India's first Sports Utility Vehicle and, in 1998, the Tata Indica, India's first fully indigenous passenger car. Within two years of launch, Tata Indica became India's largest selling car in its segment. In 2005, Tata Motors created a new segment by launching the Tata Ace, India's first indigenously developed mini-truck.