A Study on Two-wheelers in the Indian Rural Market

India is a vast country with a burgeoning population that is more than 1 billion and is next only to China. Around 72% of the Indian population is living in rural areas and forms around 12.2% of the world population, an indication that about 120 million households live in rural India out of which most of them are dependent on agriculture and agri-related activities for their livelihood and many of them are illiterates and people below poverty line (BPL). Though the lifestyles of the rural masses have undergone a sea change with the increased infrastructural facilities, application of modern techniques in cultivation, and better access to urban areas, the situation in India is still not rosy. However, of late the situation has changed drastically with even Multi National Companies (MNCs) competing keenly for a share in the rural markets. This is welcome news for the rural consumer who has been ignored by the corporate world from time immemorial. Rural Marketing can be defined as the activities taking place in rural markets to influence the rural consumers to buy specific products or services for satisfying their needs and wants by conveying messages through print, electronic and mass media. There are several peculiar characteristics that can be observed in the rural markets and in rural consumers. With the advent of modern sophisticated technology, media coverage has been far and wide. Due to increased audio and visual media coverage, sending messages to the masses in a set of capsules each depicting a particular factor, a product or service has been possible. The surface transport is one area where vast improvements can be noticed with improved roads, transportation and other means, the changing life style of a ruralite is being increasingly felt. Small and big means of transport have allowed the rural consumer to shop for his goods and services beyond his village boundaries. An important aspect of this development is that the rural consumer is slowly realizing the number of products, brands and services available in the market, a scope which was unnoticed earlier. The two-wheeler market in India is the biggest contributor to the automobile industry with a size of Rs.100,000 million. The two-wheeler market in India comprises of 3 types of vehicles- namely motorcycles, scooters, and mopeds. Foreign collaborations have been playing a major role in the growth of the Indian two-wheeler market, and most of them are Japanese firms. The modern two-wheeler firms in India have been manufacturing new categories of two wheelers such as Step Thrus and Scooterettes. These have been produced by combining two or more two-wheeler segments.