Punjab second largest tractor exporter after Maharashtra

Vijay C Roy
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, July 28

Punjab has pipped Tamil Nadu to become the second largest tractor exporter in FY20. Maharashtra retained the top position by exporting tractors worth $186 million.

Punjab has manufacturing units of Sonalika, Mahindra & Mahindra and Preet Tractors having installed capacity of over four lakh tractors per annum. Sonalika alone has a capacity to manufacture three lakh tractors per annum.

According to Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics data, Punjab exported tractors worth $178 million in 2019-20 while Tamil Nadu exported tractors worth $156 million.

Punjab is the only state among the top five exporting states which witnessed a growth of 1.70% in exports last fiscal. All other states witnessed a negative growth. Overall, the tractor exports nosedived to $765.77 million in FY20 as compared to $973.94 million in 2018-19, witnessing a decline of 21.37%.

Volume wise, the country exported 76,226 tractors in FY20 as compared to 92,075 in 2018-19, a decline of 17%. Sonalika was the largest exporter with 18,078 units.

“In the last fiscal, we were the largest exporter from India. At a time when the exports declined, we were able to maintain more or less the same numbers,” said Sonalika Group vice-chairman AS Mittal.

John Deere, Tafe, Mahindra & Mahindra, New Holland and Escorts were the other exporters.

India’s major export destinations are the US, Bangladesh, Nepal, Thailand, Mexico and Italy. Exports have also surged to Argentina and Brazil in the past decade, though less in absolute value.