German group chalks out 100mn euros investment in India
Chennai, June 3 : German consumer durable major BSH Hausgerate GmbH will invest about 100 million euros in India for a new refrigerator plant and also towards expansion, technology, marketing and brand building, said a senior company official.
"Over the next four or five years, we will invest 100 million euros in India into products, facilities and research and development (R&D)," Michael Schollhorn, Chief Operating Officer told IANS here. "Globally, per year we invest about 650 million euros into projects and other activities."
Schollhorn was here in connection with the laying down of the foundation for the new refrigerator plant next to its existing washing machine plant in Sriperumbudur.
"The investment in the new refrigerator plant will be 50 million euros and the plant will make 500,000 units per annum," Rudolf Walfort, Regional Operations Officer - Asia Pacific, BSH Household Appliances Manufacturing Private Ltd told IANS.
Currently importing and outsourcing the top end refrigerators, BSH Household Appliances will make the mass market products at its new factory expected to go on stream by 2021.
Till date the 13.8 billion euros revenue German group has invested about 100 million euros in India that includes a 300,000 units per annum washing machine plant. Schollhorn said that India was one of the fastest growing household appliances markets.
"Though Europe continues to be our major market, four years ago the group decided to grow in other regions," Schollhorn said.
The German company wants to make its Indian subsidiary BSH Household Appliances Manufacturing Private Ltd a significant player in the domestic consumer durables market.
"In the refrigerators our focus will be on the twin door products with 260-360 litre capacity. The products will be priced competitively and designed for typical Indian usage," Gunjan Srivastava, Managing Director and CEO, BSH Household Appliances told IANS.
According to Srivastava, by 2025 the company will have a double digit market share in the domestic refrigerator market.
"Currently the Indian refrigerator market size is about 10 million units," Srivastava said.
In the Indian market, BSH Household Appliances is present in the washing machines (front and top loading), cooking range, dishcare and built-in appliances. Srivastava said the washing machine capacity will also be expanded by 200,000 units to 500,000 units per annum.
On the distribution side, he said the company's products are available in 250 cities and it will be expanded as the market grows.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
