US auto major Ford Motor’s decision to abort its India operations has left both dealers and employees in the lurch. One of the first American auto giants to enter India, back in 1996, Ford Motor decided to quit the Indian market on September 9 after incurring nearly $2 billion losses over the past 10 years.

• The carmaker announced that it would shut down its manufacturing facilities in Chennai and Sanand, thus closing the production chapter in India.
• Ford will wind down vehicle assembly in Sanand by the fourth quarter of 2021 and vehicle and engine manufacturing in Chennai by the second quarter of 2022, according to a company statement.
• Ford’s decision is a blow for its 170-plus dealers, spread over 391 outlets across the country. Besides the dealers, around 4,000 employees and another 40,000 employed with the dealerships and service facilities are now a worried lot.  
• The dealers currently have 1,000 cars in their inventory along with hundreds of demo or test drive cars.
• The company plans to keep selling CKU and CBU cars but 4,000 workers are expected to lose their jobs. Ford will continue to offer aftermarket service and support to its customers in India

“As part of our Ford+ plan, we are taking difficult but necessary actions to deliver a sustainably profitable business longer term and allocate our capital to grow and create value in the right areas,” said Jim Farley, Ford Motor Company’s President and CEO. “Despite investing significantly in India, Ford has accumulated more than $2 billion of operating losses over the past 10 years and the demand for new vehicles has been much weaker than forecast.”