New Delhi: Raghupati Singhania, Chairman, JK Tyre Industries, Automotive Industries of India He said a number of measures, including a speedy announcement of a vehicle scrapping policy, were necessary to get out of the economic slowdown caused by the coronavirus epidemic. Singhania said the recent decision to restrict imports of some pneumatic tires was a step in the right direction to boost domestic manufacturing. But he added that more measures were needed to speed up the process. “Much depends on implementing the much-needed scrapping policy to effectively utilize the pent-up demand,” Managing Director Singhania said in an email interview with The Economic Times.” . “The current GST on the automobile sector has been temporarily reduced from 28% to 18%, which may also help increase demand. Auto sales declined last quarter as production and sales were severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and blockade. The biggest fall was at 140 Compared to the same perio...

German auto parts giant ZF (ZF) on Tuesday said it will cover the cost of the COVID-19 vaccine for its employees and their families in India. ZF India, which is part of ZF Friedrichshafen AG, has offices in Pune, Hyderabad and Coimbatore and employs more than 30,000 people. The company also said in a press release that ZF hopes to learn positive lessons and experiences from the outbreak and expand mixed work arrangements for its employees. “ZF will bear the cost of COVID-19 vaccination for all employees and their dependents (including parents) operating in India. ZF India will also support contractual and logistic staff through this initiative. The vaccination campaign is to overcome the coronavirus crisis and provide an opportunity for employees to get vaccinated, said ZF, adding that the campaign is to ensure the well-being of employees. HR India said, “The vaccination campaign is in line with our global safety policy and is aimed at protecting employees and their famil...