NEW DELHI: On the backdrop of the Indian government’s push for electric vehicles in the country to curb the country’s dependency on fossil fuel, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday met Suzuki Motors Corporation (SMC)’s advisor Osamu Suzuki in Tokyo.
The meeting was also attended by Suzuki’s son Toshihiro Suzuki, president and COO of SMC, as PM Modi discussed setting up facilities for electric vehicles and their batteries as well as recycling centres.
In the meeting, they “discussed opportunities for investment, innovation, manufacturing EVs, recycling centres in India,” MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
PM Modi also recalled Suzuki’s long association and contribution to the Indian automobile industry and appreciated the transformational role of Suzuki Motors in the country.
Earlier in March, SMC announced that it would invest around Rs 10,445 crore by 2026, for local manufacturing of Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV) and batteries in Gujarat.
Another group firm Maruti Suzuki Toyotsu India Pvt Ltd (MSTI) will invest Rs 45 crore in the construction of a vehicle recycling plant by 2025.
In November last year, MSTI started operations of a vehicle dismantling and recycling unit at Noida in Uttar Pradesh.
Speaking on PM Modi’s arrival in Tokyo, Toshihiro Suzuki said, “Very important milestone that in the year of 70 years of diplomatic relations, PM Modi has taken the initiative to visit Japan. It was very important to meet him on this very particular occasion.”
“The reforms of PM Modi are indescribable in the sense that he is bringing reforms which are changing the whole of India into a very modern landscape. The self-reliance scheme of PM Modi is being supported very strongly by Japanese companies,” Toshihiro Suzuki remarked.