THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Economic slowdown in the Gulf and demonetisation blues have failed to slow down the demand for cars in the state.
From the total vehicle registrations made in Kerala last fiscal, the car segment has grown by 11 per cent. It is much higher than the single-digit national level growth stated by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers.
As many as 1,27,092 cars were registered in the state till December last year. But in the last three months of the financial year, registration surged by 77,545 cars.
“We expected sales to be down after December when the economy reflected the impact of demonetisation,” a senior Motor Vehicles Department officer told Express. “But the numbers have only increased since then.”
The sale of motorbikes has registered five per cent growth while the overall vehicle registration grew by six per cent in the last fiscal to touch 9.10 lakh.
The increase in sales has helped the department collect a record revenue of `3,026 crore in 2016-17. Tax from private vehicles amounts to `1,920 crore. The initiative by the department to strengthen enforcement in terms of fines and one-time settlement helped fetch over `9 crore.
In the last fiscal, the department managed to achieve 93.2 per cent of the target. For the next fiscal, it expects to meet a revenue target of `3,600 crore by cashing in on the steady growth in vehicle sales coupled with steeper hike in fines according to the amended Motor Vehicles Act.
The increase in the number of vehicles purchased is attributed to the steady growth of NRI remittances and disposable income of government employees. Despite the economic slowdown in Gulf countries employing 85 per cent of 24 lakh NRIs, remittances have only increased.
As per the latest figures of the State Level Bankers’ Committee, remittances have grown by 16 per cent to clock `1,48,074 crore.
“People buying cars with Gulf money are more cautious than they used to be,” said Reji, a car showroom manager in Thiruvananthapuram. “Government employees form a majority of our customer base. Many of them have moved up from base level models.”