International Tractors recently announced that they will begin selling their Yanmar and Solis branded tractors domestically in India, where they have been manufactured for years. The decision correlates to a current push from the Indian government to increase farmers' wages and a drop in the Indian tractor market, leaving room for competition between brands.

According to LiveMint, Raman Mittal, executive director, ITL said, “These tractors were already produced in India but weren’t available locally until now. ITL makes tractors for Yanmar’s global markets. This is the first time when next generation Japanese tractors are being built in India. These will be exported to USA, Europe and are also configured for the Indian farming needs."

ITL said that it plans to sell 50,000 units under the Solis and Yanmar names in the next 5 years in a separate string of 200 dealerships, planned to be set up in 2 years.

With this move, ITL plans to take the place of Tractors and Farm Equipment (TAFE) as India’s second-largest tractor player.
“With Solis and Yanmar coming into India, we are definitely gunning for the number 2 position. However, our bigger objective is to achieve annual tractor sales of 200,000 units in another 4 years from now. If we do this, the number two position will follow," said Mittal.

Both brands are planning to carry tractors all along the horsepower spectrum, to be launched in FY20. ITL plans to allocate manufacturing power from its Hoshiarpur facility to produce these new tractors: of the 300,000 units made per year, 100,000 will be Sollis and Yanmar.

Mittal remained enthusiastic about the lack of competition the two brands will bring to their existing lines. “These are all completely different tractors. Yanmar tractors are lightweight and are purpose built for paddy fields. Meanwhile, Solis tractors are more versatile in bringing in new implements to enhance productivity on the field. They offer specific applications in potato and sugarcane farming. Solis products are also good for orchards," said Mittal.

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