the goan I network
PANAJI
Several automobile dealers in Goa are carefully observing how the vehicle sales will pan out in the ongoing quarter. In the previous quarter, the sector had got a breather in the form of a 50 per cent reduction in road tax on all vehicles, which was in force till December 31, 2019.
Starting January 1, there is no such waiver and customers willing to buy automobiles have to pay the full road tax. Moreover, this is also a transition period, as all auto manufacturers have to mandatorily comply with BS-VI emission norms from April 1.
A number of manufacturers are offering discounts on automobiles to clear the BS-IV stock. However, the sentiment in the market is still not upbeat on account of a weak economy.
The customers have to decide between buying a BS-IV vehicle at a lesser price today and buying a BS-VI vehicle with stringent norms but with a higher price from April 1 onwards.
Prashant Joshi from Goa Motors (a dealer of Hyundai) said, “A lot of discounts are being offered in the market on BS-IV vehicles. On a small car like Hyundai Grand, we were offering a discounted price of Rs 1 lakh, which included the road-tax waiver and discount both. When BS-VI comes into force, vehicles will become more expensive.”
Pan-India, the auto sector is grappling with weak demand. In Goa, the sentiment had improved between October and December 2019 thanks to a 50 per cent reduction in road tax by the State Government.
Evencio Quadros, chairman and managing director, Quadros Motors, said, “Due to liquidity crunch, people are postponing the purchase of automobiles. Even those who have money are deferring the purchase due to the upcoming implementation of BS-VI norms.”
Meanwhile, Goa Automobile Dealers Association (GADA) has already approached the State Government urging it to extend the road-tax waiver till March 31.
Joshi, who is also the president of GADA, said, “We have requested the government to extend the road-tax waiver because it will help the government in earning more tax revenue as well.”
