VIBGYOR LAUNCHES ENTRY-LEVEL MOBIKE

 Vibgyor Allied Industries Ltd. (VAIL), a Kolkata-based company with diverse interests, has launched its entry-level motor bike. Priced at Rs. 28,999 for a 100-cc bike, the vehicle is expected to be on the Indian roads by April, Raja Bhadra, Chairman and Managing Director, said.

Speaking to The Hindu prior to the launch of the vehicle recently (by former Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly), Mr. Bhadra said work on the project, located at Dhulagori in Howrah, had commenced in 2007 and commercial production would begin in April. Land for the project was acquired privately, he said.

He said out of the Rs. 660 crore project cost (including two years working capital), around Rs. 120 crore had already been spent. The project has a debt equity ratio of 3:1 and is being financed by Syndicate Bank. The monthly capacity would be 10,000.
This is our gift during a recessionary period when affordability coupled with style and some unique features will help the product create its own market which will initially focus on males in the 18-plus age group in Tier-II and Tier-III cities. The product has been certified by the Haryana-based International Centre for Automobile Technology. At the launch, he said the company had started appointing exclusive dealers and a 521-strong national dealership network would be in place by 2009-10, with a back-up of sub-dealership. Units were being planned in the three other regions of the country.Mrigen Banerjee, head of operations, said a 125-cc bike, a utility vehicle and a scooter were also on the anvil.

On the group which started operations in 2002, Mr. Bhadra said VAIL, which is a public limited company, was part of group of seven companies which had interests in merchant exports, PVC pipe manufacturing, real estate and hospitality and the running of educational institutions.