top of page

By:

Correspondent

23 August 2024 at 4:29:04 pm

Festive Surge

India’s bazaars have glittered this Diwali with the unmistakable glow of consumer confidence. The country’s festive sales crossed a staggering Rs. 6 lakh crore with goods alone accounting for Rs. 5.4 lakh crore and services contributing Rs. 65,000 crore. More remarkable still, the bulk of this spending flowed through India’s traditional markets rather than e-commerce platforms. After years of economic caution and digital dominance, Indians are once again shopping in person and buying local....

Festive Surge

India’s bazaars have glittered this Diwali with the unmistakable glow of consumer confidence. The country’s festive sales crossed a staggering Rs. 6 lakh crore with goods alone accounting for Rs. 5.4 lakh crore and services contributing Rs. 65,000 crore. More remarkable still, the bulk of this spending flowed through India’s traditional markets rather than e-commerce platforms. After years of economic caution and digital dominance, Indians are once again shopping in person and buying local. This reversal owes much to policy. The recent rationalisation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) which trimmed rates across categories from garments to home furnishings, has given consumption a timely push. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s September rate cuts, combined with income tax relief and easing interest rates, have strengthened household budgets just as inflation softened. The middle class, long squeezed between rising costs and stagnant wages, has found reason to spend again. Retailers report that shoppers filled their bags with everything from lab-grown diamonds and casual wear to consumer durables and décor, blurring the line between necessity and indulgence. The effect has been broad-based. According to Crisil Ratings, 40 organised apparel retailers, who together generate roughly a third of the sector’s revenue, could see growth of 13–14 percent this financial year, aided by a 200-basis-point bump from GST cuts alone. Small traders too have flourished. The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) estimates that 85 percent of total festive trade came from non-corporate and traditional markets, a robust comeback for brick-and-mortar retail that had been under siege from online rivals. This surge signals a subtle but significant cultural shift. The “Vocal for Local” and “Swadeshi Diwali” campaigns struck a patriotic chord, with consumers reportedly preferring Indian-made products to imported ones. Demand for Chinese goods fell sharply, while sales of Indian-manufactured products rose by a quarter over last year. For the first time in years, “buying Indian” has become both an act of economic participation and of national pride. The sectoral spread of this boom underlines its breadth. Groceries and fast-moving consumer goods accounted for 12 percent of the total, gold and jewellery 10 percent, and electronics 8 percent. Even traditionally modest categories like home furnishings, décor and confectionery recorded double-digit growth. In the smaller towns that anchor India’s consumption story, traders say stable prices and improved affordability kept registers ringing late into the festive weekend. Yet, much of this buoyancy rests on a fragile equilibrium. Inflation remains contained, and interest rates have been eased, but both could tighten again. Sustaining this spurt will require continued fiscal prudence and regulatory clarity, especially as digital commerce continues to expand its reach. Yet for now, the signs are auspicious. After years of subdued demand and inflationary unease, India’s shoppers appear to have rediscovered their appetite for consumption and their faith in domestic enterprise. The result is not only a record-breaking Diwali, but a reaffirmation of the local marketplace as the heartbeat of India’s economy.

Tata had ‘Make in India’ vision four decades ago

Updated: Oct 22, 2024

Make in India

After getting inducted into TATA Sons, Ratan Tataji’s first responsibility was NELCO- a company that manufactured radio sets. I had just joined NELCO back in March 1981. The company was just recovering from an 8-month closure due to a workers’ strike. At such a critical time, the company was handed over to Ratan Tata. Very soon a gate meeting by Dr. Datta Samant was announced and the danger of closure loomed over the factory. On the same day when the meeting was scheduled, a close associate of Ratan Tata came to the shop floor and stood on a cranky table appealing to all the workers & officers to gather. He gave a superb speech, stating how Ratan Tata Saheb treats the company as his family & how each one of us have a great respect for him as a family head, and that we would render him our unconditional, wholehearted support in pulling out our company from the crisis. This had a very positive impact and the gate meeting turned out to be a flop show. All this because of the very good quality of Ratan Saheb of dealing with all officials from top officials to the workers with grace & humanity, imparting a high level of motivation.


The same year on NELCO day he delivered a speech about his future plans for the company. I clearly remember him saying- This can become a state-of-the-art electronics gadgets manufacturing company & can be named as TATA Electronics Company. He said, “There will be a second TELCO in that case”.


I had seen many blind workers working on the assembly line manufacturing radio sets in NELCO. It was so thought provoking for me. He was a businessman with a difference. Earning profit was not the only motive. His gesture of contributing a great deal to humanity, uplifting or supporting life of the downtrodden, handicapped and the likes was exceptional. What a noble philosophy indeed! This had and continues to generate unprecedented loyalty to the brand name TATA from workers to consumers and masses.


Occasionally Ratan Saheb used to visit the shop floor of NELCO. In those days the company was manufacturing over 25,000 radio sets in a month. He would visit the assembly line and talk to the assembly workers, and managers of other disciplines like production, materials, R&D to understand their grievances. This would enhance the sense of belonging. I was fortunate enough to witness such visits of Ratan Saheb and having a close glimpse of him. I used to wonder how he was so involved in understanding the manufacturing problems at the micro level.


During all his visits his attire used to be quite modest. I always saw him in white full shirt. He would always be polite, never raised his voice and never complained about how hot and humid conditions prevailed on the shop floor. His broad, affirmative and convincing voice with absolute clarity of thoughts would establish a direct connection with the employees.


He had the vision of ‘Make in India’ four decades ago. Everything in house - all the allied processes related to radio manufacturing, hot foiling of radio front panel, printed circuit board manufacturing can be easily outsourced, which is the present trend. Ratan saheb ensured that everything was made in the NELCO factory.


NELCO, in spite of having enough space, R&D and manpower to have mass production of TV sets, it was the era of license raj and licenses were issued only to small scale industries, as per the then prevailing industrial policy. How disappointing and frustrating it must have got for ambitious industrialists like Ratan Tata! However, instead of running away from the scene, he found a solution. Vendors were developed with due licenses to manufacture TVs and NELCO’s first colour TV “Chroma Delux” was rolled out. Our entire team under the leadership of Nabar was busy streamlining the manufacturing line. After few days of working tirelessly, I still feel proud to recall how everybody strived to make the first perfectly working set of “Chroma Delux” that was to be sent to Ratan Tata’s home. If we compare today’s TV set “Chroma Delux” was quite a primitive version. Still like all of us Ratan Tata was extremely eager to see the new baby.


Life takes you back to the ideologies and inspiring people you met in life during the initial stage of your career. I left NELCO soon. Later after ten years, I met Nabar once again by coincidence. Today I am a vice President with an Indian company promoted by Nabar called Ikebana electronics Pvt Limited. The company produces heat shrinkable products. I am in-charge of Indian operations and export to neighboring countries & design & type testing of Ikebana products. Ratan Tata’s ideals and his aura will always remain a source of inspiration for me in my journey ahead. 


(The writer is BTech (BHU) and a former employee of NELCO, headed by late Ratan Tata)

Comments

bottom of page