Auto industry urges support for exports from Union Budget
One of the largest suppliers of components, Uno Minda said that extending and deepening the PLI-Auto scheme to include EV subsystems such as sensors, semiconductors and advanced electronics will be critical to strengthening domestic value addition.
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BHAWIKA CHHABRA
The Indian auto industry wants stronger support for exports and continued investment in road infrastructure from the upcoming Budget, so that there is momentum in the sales in the coming year.
“We would like stronger support for export competitiveness – higher RoDTEP (Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products) rates, improved duty drawback, and faster rollout of schemes that help Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) integrate into global value chains. Support for electric vehicle (EV) supply chains and critical materials would also be very helpful,” Vinnie Mehta, Director General at Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA) told businessline.
There are many recent policy announcements, from other quarters of the government that are going to boost the automotive manufacturing ecosystem such as the Scheme of Ministry of Heavy Industries to Promote Manufacturing of Sintered Rare Earth Permanent Magnets (REPM), he said.
Uniform GST
A uniform GST of 18 per cent across all auto components was a long-standing demand of the industry, which has now been met and has a very beneficial impact across the entire value chain, he added.
One of the largest suppliers of components, Uno Minda said that extending and deepening the PLI-Auto scheme to include EV subsystems such as sensors, semiconductors and advanced electronics will be critical to strengthening domestic value addition.
“We also see strong merit in higher R&D incentives, a dedicated innovation fund for automotive electronics and clean mobility technologies, and faster tax dispute resolution mechanisms to unlock capital for growth. We also expect better ease of doing business by rationalising GST and customs duties, resolving inverted duty structures, and offering a stable, predictable tax regime will further enhance ease of doing business,” Ravi Mehra, Managing Director, Uno Minda, said.
With focused support on exports, talent attraction and technology-led compliance, the Budget can play a pivotal role in positioning India as a global hub for future-ready automotive and mobility solutions, he added.
Santosh Iyer, CEO and MD at Mercedes-Benz India said that though Budget is not just a direct effect on luxury car sales, but it is trickle down effect to the sector by certain announcements that would influence luxury car sales.
“For instance, for luxury car sales it is road infrastructure, so any additional capex allocation for road, definitely helps. The government can also rationalise and harmonise customs duty tariffs to help luxury car…by bringing under one single tariff line because its hardly 3, 4, 5 per cent of the volume, which is not going to affect anyone. But, at least it improves sentiment…and I think if the fiscal announcements are stable and there can be, which can result into a much more stable forex development. Then we can avoid price increases and again further grow the market actually,” Iyer told businessline.
Published on January 16, 2026
