'Angad tractor works cheaper than pair of bullocks'

Ahmedabad, Sep 13 (UNI) SAS Motors Ltd which launched a farmer friendly tractor 'Angad' over a year and half ago is far more economical than two pairs of bullocks, said Ravindra Kumar, MD of SAS Motors here today.

The tractor Angad 240 D of 22 HP single cylinder engine is the first optimised farm automation system for rural India. It is a pioneering initiative to make effective low cost mechanisation. Over 400 tractors have been sold in Gujarat and 3000 in the country, Mr Kumar said.

Previously, farmers had to depend on bullocks that are high on cost and maintenance and have a low life span. Majority of farmers in India are small and marginal and a tractor costs atleast Rs 3 lakhs which is beyond their reach. Angad on the other hand costs only Rs 1.5 lakhs and even this can paid with a down payment of Rs 37,500 with an EMI of just Rs 2709 in five years, Mr Kumar said. ''Our tractors are 40 per cent cheaper than the cheapest tractor of comparable horse power available in India,'' he added.

Elaborating on the high utility value of Angad, he said the tractor gives 15 km per litre compared to 7 to 8 km/litre of other brands. What is more it be repaired at the tehsil level even by a cycle mechanic in any part of the country which reduces maintenance costs further.

A poor farmer who buys our tractor gets a real additional income of Rs 12,000 per month by using the tractor to provide additional haulage and rental services after deducting fuel costs, maintenance costs and even the monthly EMI from the revenues. The tractor can also be attached to various implements that enables a small farmer to create alternative stream of steady income. ''It can also produce 8-10 Kv of electricty.'' Mr Kumar said.

Angad's portfolio includes farm implements like rotary cultivator - which costs only Rs 28,000 unlike rotavators for other tractors that cost Rs 65,000 -, plough, tiller and a matching trailer to facilitiate connectivity between villages on kuccha roads, he said.

Also we have cut costs drastically by eliminating distributors down the value chain. We supply the tractors directly to grassroot dealers so that a farmer is not overcharged, Mr Kumar said.

Stating that fruits of mechanisation should reach rural areas, Mr Kumar said that the idea of Angad came three years ago and was ''we designed a tractor to give the farmer a tailor-made for Indian conditions.'' Angad is manufactured in three places viz., Pune, Anambagh near Calcutta and Bhopal, Mr Kumar said.

With the tractor gaining popularity in Gujarat, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh SAS Motors would be spreading its wings in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Bihar, Assam and Orissa.

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