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Informist, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025

By Anand JC and Priyasmita Dutta

MUMBAI/NEW DELHI – Bajaj Auto Ltd. Friday said it would be difficult to manage capacities of anti-lock braking systems ahead of the mandated segment-wide introduction of the component. Automobile companies are in touch with the government to understand the best way forward for the introduction of this component across two-wheelers, the management told analysts in a post-earnings conference call.

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways is expected to meet representatives of the industry Tuesday to understand the pros and cons of introducing anti-lock braking systems on all two-wheelers. The anti-lock braking system prevents the wheels from locking and enables safe braking.

Earlier this year, the ministry had made it mandatory for all new two-wheelers, irrespective of engine capacity, to be equipped with anti-lock braking systems from Jan. 1--a move that is expected to lead to an increase in two-wheeler prices. "It will be difficult to manage the capacity because that doesn't obviously exist," Rakesh Sharma, a whole-time director at Bajaj Auto, told analysts.

The Pune-based automotive major reported a net profit of INR 24.80 billion on a revenue of INR 149.22 billion for the September quarter. "Predictably, the GST (goods and services tax) rate cut, combined with the festive sentiment, turbocharged the industry, and all BUs (business units) made full use of it to deliver an outstanding retail performance during the festive season as well as October," Sharma said.

Bajaj Auto expects the two-wheeler industry to grow 6-8% n the medium term. "We will aim to outpace the industry growth in the 125 cc-plus (cubic centimetre-plus) segment and continue the path of acquiring market share, which got commenced in the period of September-October," Sharma said. 

In the commercial vehicle space, internal combustion engine-fuelled three-wheelers reported single-digit growth in October, up from a single-digit decline in Apr-Aug. The company expects the segment to grow 5% due to the GST rate cut.

Bajaj Auto's export business has been thriving, driven by broad-based growth across regions. "As it is with the surge in exports, manufacturing is operating at peak capacity in three-wheelers and we are now, therefore, taking steps to build three-wheeler capacity in the next few months, particularly in the e-vehicle segments," Sharma said. Given the broad-based nature of its export growth, the company expects the trend to continue.

The company also expects to make a breakthrough in its quadricycle business through the launch of the Qute in Egypt. "We have been trying to get it while the top-level approvals are through and the operating level and the ITO level, those approvals are just coming in," Sharma said. Bajaj Auto hopes to expand the exports of its Qute quadricycle going forward.

Talking about its premium motorcycle brands KTM and Triumph in India, the company said it sold over 30,000 units during the September quarter, up 30% on year. "Both brands benefited a lot from the customer's desire to upgrade to aspirational purchase triggered by the GST cuts," Sharma said. "We are also working along with our partners, KTM and Triumph, on reshaping our portfolio to take advantage of the lower GST rates and these products will be launched in due course," he added.

Motorcycles with a capacity exceeding 125 cubic centimetres are of strategic importance to Bajaj Auto. "Hopefully we will be able to harness some of the upgrading sentiment unleashed by the GST rate cuts," Sharma said. "The market share erosion which we were experiencing over the last few quarters had got arrested by the end of Q2 (Jul-Sept) and October saw the beginning of market share gain in the strategic 125 cc-plus segment and it was in particular driven by the 150 cc-plus sport segment."

Bajaj Auto launched its electric rickshaw brand Riki in August. "It is early days but we are very, very keen to grab a good share of this market," Sharma said. "Beyond this, in another one or two years' time, we are working on some more solutions because we are seeing there is an intense requirement for this last-mile transport."

Demand for its compressed natural gas-run motorcycle Freedom 125 has been much lower than in the initial phases, Sharma said. The segment has been hit by underfilling of gas tanks, which compromises the range. "The first adopters are people who are heavy-duty users, because they tend to save more. And for them, range is very important; when that range gets compromised, they switch the CNG to petrol," he said.

"We feel that it will be a slow and steady improvement. And we are focusing on those geographies which have got not just the number of CNG pumps but the density," he added.

Friday, shares of Bajaj Auto closed flat on the National Stock Exchange at INR 8,721.50 apiece.  End

Edited by Rajeev Pai

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