Maruti Suzuki has been the country's most preferred brand in passenger vehicle segment, infact since years it has also been a preferred pick by the country's defense personnels. This time around the company has received its biggest order from the Indian Army till-date i.e. for over 4000 units of Maruti Gypsy's. The Indian Army's collaboration with Maruti Suzuki dates back to the year 1991 when it had placed its first order. Since then, the company has already sold about 31,000 vehicle units to the Indian Army.
The first trim of Maruti Suzuki Gypsy was manufactured way back in 1985 and since then there has been no looking back for the SUV in the country. The company has stated that so-far, it has manufactured about 1,40,000 Gypsy units in India of which about 22% is stated to be reserved for the armed forces. The total value of the order received by Maruti Suzuki is stated to be somewhere about Rs. 216 - 238 crore considering the fact that each Gypsy is priced at about Rs. 5.42 - 5.96 lakhs. The deal was reportedly closed under central government's tendering policies. Speaking more on the occasion, RS Kalsi, executive director and head of domestic sales and marketing at Maruti Suzuki India, said, “Army has some specific requirements and they need additional accessories. We tweak those specifications even though it involves a lot of effort on our part in terms of engineering and production. We are glad they have shown trust in us with repeat orders. These (army) vehicles operate in tough terrain, in difficult geographies, such as in Ladakh. There are elaborate standards and quality inspection processes, which are carried out continuously. Given the good performance and the adequate availability of spares of our cars, the army prefers these.”
Speaking more on the occasion, RS Kalsi furher added, “The armed and paramilitary forces are a major customer for Maruti Suzuki. The army is amongst the major buyers of our vehicles since 1991. Starting with around 1,500 Gypsys the first year, we have sold about 31,000 of these to them. The latest order is the single largest we have had for the Gypsy from the army.” Apart from special modification for the Army vehicles. The Gypsy's are also loaded with convoy light that are capable of emiting green rays during black out situations.
