Unions in India say the government has offered to provide a battalion of armed police for a year to Maruti-Suzuki in an effort to entice the automaker to restart operations.
Maruti’s plant at Manesar has been in lock-down since 21 July following the attack by a rampaging mob that left the human resources manager dead and dozens of staff in hospital.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
The Indian-Japanese automaker has consistently declined to name a date when the plant could re-open – although Suzuki today (10 August) told just-auto from Japan it confirmed Maruti’s claim it would stay in Manesar and not move to the relative tranquillity of West Bengal.
However, the Haryana State government’s dramatic offer to provide an armed batallion could provide the carrot to stay in Manesar, which is slated for a major capacity increase.
“The Haryana government is making pressure [on] the management to restart production,” All India Trades Union Congress (AITUC) national secretary, Darshan Sachdev, told just-auto from India.
“They have assured them one full battalion comprising 550 [police] will be deployed at the factory. It is the government who pays – it will not be less than a year.”
Should the battalion be stationed at Maruti-Suzuki, it can also be called on to police other potential disturbances in the Manesar industrial area to “ensure safety and peace.”
The AITUC said the majority of those involved in July’s extreme violence had now been arrested, but the union fears up to 400 workers out of the almost-4,000 workforce will not be taken back. Maruti also told just-auto last week it would not be hiring contract workers again until next year.
“This battalion will be outside the factory,” said Sachdev. “Inside, the management has its own security arrangements. Police only [will be used] when there is a problem.”
The Japanese element of the Indian operation has released only scant information so far, but Suzuki did reveal how shocked it was at the level of violence that resulted in major arson, although declined to reveal its cost.
“We have never had such violence before – we are trying to recover,” a Suzuki spokesman at the company’s headquarters in Hamamatsu near Mount Fuji told just-auto. We don’t make any official comment on cost.”
The Maruti-Suzuki plant, around 30km from Delhi, is currently in a lock-out situation with the vast majority of its near-4,000 workforce at home without pay.
Manesar produces the Swift [hatchback] and Dzire [sedan] models for which the order backlog currently stands at 100,000 with a waiting period per vehicle of up to five months.
Neither Maruti nor the Haryana government was immediately available for comment.
