Bajaj Auto started making Vespa scooters in India in the year 1959. Since then, the company was the face of scooter industry in India till 2005 when they decided to quit the scooter segment and concentrate only on motorcycles. However, with the revival of the scooter segment in India, especially with the governments push for electric scooters, the company decided to re-enter the scooter segment with an electric offering.

Bajaj showcased the electric version of their iconic Bajaj Chetak scooter recently. These scooters have a range between 85 and 95 Km depending on whether one rides in the sport or economy mode. Bajaj intends to start selling these scooters from January 2020 in Pune and Bangalore at an expected price of between one and one and a half lakhs. These scooters will be offered with a 3 year/ 50,000 km warranty and with a battery life of 70,00 KM.

Bajaj Auto has a joint venture with the Austrian bike manufacturer KTM which owns the KTM and Husqvarna brands. They manufacture and sell KTM bikes in India and are soon expected to launch the Husqvarna brand in India. Bajaj has announced that they would be sharing the platform with KTM and Husqvarna for their scooters. This shows the versatility of the platform, because, while Bajaj Chetak has to appeal to the Indian middle class, the KTM should be capable of racing and the Husqvarna should be uber stylish in keeping with their brand images.

KTM e-moped – representative image

“The best way to be a global company is to produce platforms which are modular and flexible on one hand and on the other should be leveraged by different brands. Going forward, we can use this platform for both KTM and Husqvarna scooters,” managing director Rajeev Bajaj said.

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