Hind Motors appoints HDFC to sell WB land

C K Birla group company Hindustan Motors has appointed HDFC as consultant to sell a part of its land in West Bengal for which it has sought the permission of the state government.

"HDFC will be managing the process for us, and we are looking to sell around 300 acres of the 740-acre land we have," Hindustan Motors managing director R Santhanum told reporters after launching an SUV Mitsubishi Montero.

Santhanum said the company was awaiting the nod from the state government before going ahead with the process - proceeds from which would be used for strengthening its car and auto component business.

"The proceeds would be used for having a vibrant manufacturing enterprise at Uttarpara, and we hope that the final decision on the matter is taken through," he said.

Santhanum said the auto component business of the Birlas, which was hived off into a separate subsidiary AVTEC, would see "substantial investments" from the company as it moved ahead from supplying components to domestic original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in western countries.

"On the components side, we are in auto castings, auto forgings and auto stampings, and expect the business to see considerable growth in the coming years," he said.

Apart from selling its Ambassador model in the domestic market, Hindustan Motors has a partnership with Mitsubishi to sell its cars in India.

The newly-launched Montero has been priced at Rs 29.7 lakh.