With every possible aspect taken care of Prasad wants Deccan Auto to be known as a manufacturer ‘world class' buses for the masses and be a front-runner in the introduction of appropriate technology. He is obviously excited about his entrepreneurial foray into the bus manufacturing sector and continues to seek inspiration from his other successful ventures.
"As an entrepreneur I have made success of businesses which others had written off. We have built cement plants under tough conditions. We have had to even build roads to reach out sites and then put up power plants to start the construction of the plants. And importantly, we have brought in prosperity to the areas we have reached. We continue this work with Deccan Auto," he says with certain pride.
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Technical association with Zhongtong Bus Holding Company Prasad and his team visited may companies globally looking for a partner who would understand the Indian requirement and be flexible enough to change the product to suit the Indian requirement. A product that is successful in one country may not necessarily work in another. According to Balaji, China has enough manufacturing capabilities beyond its requirement and it has various quality levels. One needs to choose the right level. "For the same quality level, it is cheaper to manufacture in India since we have superior workmanship. China has better processes. The strengths and weakness are complimentary as of today. We make a good pair. It is only that we need to understand and communicate better to get the best. We are just doing that," Balaji says. Not surprisingly, Prasad feels that China is the best bet for the Indian bus scenario. "We only need to touch the right codes and take it forward," he adds. |
Considering his propensity to venture into associated territories, does he see Deccan Auto also diversifying into other commercial vehicle segments like trucks? Well, it is definitely on the distant horizon but he wants to focus on buses at the present. "As of now we need to concentrate on Buses. This is our first entry into the automobile sector and hence need to consolidate before we jump into other areas. Of course, if opportunity strikes we are open to entering into the other commercial vehicle areas," he says with an entrepreneurial smile.
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