Nepal 's indigenous vehicle manufacturing business has completed 10 years. Hulas Agro Engineering, a thresher manufacturing company that also imported and marketed water pumps, was renamed Hulas Motors and till now it has already sold about 500 units of vehicles.
The story of how the idea originated and was implemented into making more refined utility vehicle is interesting.
According to Surendra Golchha, Managing Director of the Biratnagar-based Hulas Motors and the Director of Golchha Organisation, the idea originated when the staff of Hulas Agro were discussing how to overcome the high price burden of the water pumps that the company was selling. One pump engine then would cost about Rs. 30,000, a hefty sum for the average Nepali farmer. One idea that came up during the discussion was to find ways to make the engine fulfil a couple of other purposes as well. "So we decided to put this engine on a cheap chassis and make it capable to do threshing, running pumps and carrying people and goods to and from the farm and around the village. Luckily I found a person from India who accepted to make such a machine for the cost of Rs. 40,000," recalls Golchha.
After the vehicle was made ready in Patna , it was brought to Nepal with much hassle in the customs as it did not fall under any category of the customs code. The power supply was with the fan-belt and all the components were second or third hand. "It had no roof, no headlight, nothing", says Golchha. Experimenting and improvising it, the company sold 2-3 such vehicles with the same technology that the Indian mechanic had used. The price was Rs. 80,000. But the performance was not good and the company was not in a position to give any warranty. So, plenty of complaints were received. Then there were further improvements made by using first hand components and the price was hiked to Rs. 200,000 and Rs. 250,000. Still it was not ok as Mahindra pick ups then were available for Rs. 600,000 or Rs. 700,000 in case of new and Rs. 300,000 or Rs. 400,000 in case of second hand.
Then came the new body though the engine and chassis were the same. "But when I test drove the vehicle, I noticed that the vehicle's performance was not matching with its looks. So we decided to change the engine and chassis as well," he recalls.
However, the vehicle was placed in the Auto Exhibition in Kathmandu by hauling it all the way from Biratnagar on a truck. Though it was a hard time to get it climb the incline from Tinkune of Kathmandu to the International Conference Centre at Baneswor, the visitors admired it and one of them suggested the name "Sherpa" (the mountain porter) instead of "power cart" (the name it was given earlier as it was originally conceived to replace the bullock carts in the village). The first Sherpa was, however, produced only after one year. Then came the 20D model (for 20 HP diesel engine), of which 3-4 units were sold. It was followed by 32D (about 50 units sold) and by 46D (about 35 units sold). The added features in 46D made it useful also in the hills.Meanwhile, the Nepal Vehicle Emission Standard was promulgated by the government and the company had to change the product drastically. The result was 46NES (representing Nepal Emission Standard). Then the E-Drive with new engine and the 'e' on the name representing economy, easy driving etc. was introduced. It sold about 130 units. Then alas, the government imposed a 32 per cent excise on vehicles, thus bringing the Nepal-made vehicles under the excise net. Golchha says, though his product was selling well during that time, the excise made it costly. As the imported vehicles were subject to 110 per cent duty, the company still enjoyed a protection because all the duties and excise on its product added up to only about 60 per cent, Golchha says this is not enough protection as the company as well as the brand is new. Then came Mustang and Mini-V - the latter being a Maruti Van size vehicle with option for petrol and gas engine. According to him, the company is selling about 70-80 units of Sherpa, Mustang and Mini-V together and for the fiscal year 2006-07 the target is to reach 200 units. However, Mini-V is not being improved because of the problem of duty.The company is focusing on the commercial use of its vehicles, not for personal use, thus pitting them against major brands such as Mahindra of India. Now the company is marketing Mustang also as a commercial vehicle for the urban areas. According to Golchha, about 10 to 20 per cent of the customers decide to buy his products due to patriotism. "Being cheaper and better suited for some hill terrain when compared with the competition are the prime motivators for the buyers. But patriotism too figures in the calculation, I think," he says.
But that level of patriotism is not there in the case of government, complains Golchha. "The officers want luxurious cars and the drivers too want to drive luxurious cars. Even in such a situation, we have been able to sell so many vehicles. For that I must thank my customers who encouraged us," he says.
So, what are the plans of the company now? "Making newer models that are more efficient," says the indefatigable Golchha.
The story of how the idea originated and was implemented into making more refined utility vehicle is interesting.
According to Surendra Golchha, Managing Director of the Biratnagar-based Hulas Motors and the Director of Golchha Organisation, the idea originated when the staff of Hulas Agro were discussing how to overcome the high price burden of the water pumps that the company was selling. One pump engine then would cost about Rs. 30,000, a hefty sum for the average Nepali farmer. One idea that came up during the discussion was to find ways to make the engine fulfil a couple of other purposes as well. "So we decided to put this engine on a cheap chassis and make it capable to do threshing, running pumps and carrying people and goods to and from the farm and around the village. Luckily I found a person from India who accepted to make such a machine for the cost of Rs. 40,000," recalls Golchha.
After the vehicle was made ready in Patna , it was brought to Nepal with much hassle in the customs as it did not fall under any category of the customs code. The power supply was with the fan-belt and all the components were second or third hand. "It had no roof, no headlight, nothing", says Golchha. Experimenting and improvising it, the company sold 2-3 such vehicles with the same technology that the Indian mechanic had used. The price was Rs. 80,000. But the performance was not good and the company was not in a position to give any warranty. So, plenty of complaints were received. Then there were further improvements made by using first hand components and the price was hiked to Rs. 200,000 and Rs. 250,000. Still it was not ok as Mahindra pick ups then were available for Rs. 600,000 or Rs. 700,000 in case of new and Rs. 300,000 or Rs. 400,000 in case of second hand.
Then came the new body though the engine and chassis were the same. "But when I test drove the vehicle, I noticed that the vehicle's performance was not matching with its looks. So we decided to change the engine and chassis as well," he recalls.
However, the vehicle was placed in the Auto Exhibition in Kathmandu by hauling it all the way from Biratnagar on a truck. Though it was a hard time to get it climb the incline from Tinkune of Kathmandu to the International Conference Centre at Baneswor, the visitors admired it and one of them suggested the name "Sherpa" (the mountain porter) instead of "power cart" (the name it was given earlier as it was originally conceived to replace the bullock carts in the village). The first Sherpa was, however, produced only after one year. Then came the 20D model (for 20 HP diesel engine), of which 3-4 units were sold. It was followed by 32D (about 50 units sold) and by 46D (about 35 units sold). The added features in 46D made it useful also in the hills.Meanwhile, the Nepal Vehicle Emission Standard was promulgated by the government and the company had to change the product drastically. The result was 46NES (representing Nepal Emission Standard). Then the E-Drive with new engine and the 'e' on the name representing economy, easy driving etc. was introduced. It sold about 130 units. Then alas, the government imposed a 32 per cent excise on vehicles, thus bringing the Nepal-made vehicles under the excise net. Golchha says, though his product was selling well during that time, the excise made it costly. As the imported vehicles were subject to 110 per cent duty, the company still enjoyed a protection because all the duties and excise on its product added up to only about 60 per cent, Golchha says this is not enough protection as the company as well as the brand is new. Then came Mustang and Mini-V - the latter being a Maruti Van size vehicle with option for petrol and gas engine. According to him, the company is selling about 70-80 units of Sherpa, Mustang and Mini-V together and for the fiscal year 2006-07 the target is to reach 200 units. However, Mini-V is not being improved because of the problem of duty.The company is focusing on the commercial use of its vehicles, not for personal use, thus pitting them against major brands such as Mahindra of India. Now the company is marketing Mustang also as a commercial vehicle for the urban areas. According to Golchha, about 10 to 20 per cent of the customers decide to buy his products due to patriotism. "Being cheaper and better suited for some hill terrain when compared with the competition are the prime motivators for the buyers. But patriotism too figures in the calculation, I think," he says.
But that level of patriotism is not there in the case of government, complains Golchha. "The officers want luxurious cars and the drivers too want to drive luxurious cars. Even in such a situation, we have been able to sell so many vehicles. For that I must thank my customers who encouraged us," he says.
So, what are the plans of the company now? "Making newer models that are more efficient," says the indefatigable Golchha.
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