Record downpour halts production at Chennai’s key auto parts cluster

Cyclonic storm Michaung and the record downpour have impacted manufacturing operations at one of the key auto ancillary clusters in Chennai.

Padi, one of the oldest auto parts clusters that houses several production units of TVS Group’s auto component makers, has been badly affected due to flooding. Most of the TVS Group’s manufacturing units in the area are under a few feet of water, resulting in suspension of production for a few days.

“The situation is far worse than we anticipated. We are assessing the damage and hope to be up and running by this weekend,” Arathi Krishna, Managing Director, Sundram Fasteners, told businessline.

• Also Read: Cyclonic storm Michaung, record downpour cripple MSMEs in Chennai industrial estates

There are at least half a dozen TVS Group companies that produce various parts, both for domestic and export markets at their Padi manufacturing campuses.

“There is water logging at the Padi sub-station and many of the plants. There is still no power in the Padi area and hence the companies in the Padi belt have not been able to operate”, said a top official of another leading auto parts firm.

Meanwhile, large vehicle makers at the Sripuerumbudur corridor downed their shutters because of the cyclonic storm and record rains.

“Considering the safety and well-being of our employees under the prevailing cyclonic conditions in Chennai and surrounding districts, the factory operation (all shifts) at Hyundai Motor India Sriperumbudur facility were closed on Monday and Tuesday,” said a spokesperson of the company, which has resumed operations today.

• Also Read: North TN pummelled as severe cyclone Michaung misses Chennai by a whisker 

Hyundai India’s CSR arm Hyundai Motor India Foundation has announced a ₹3 crore relief to support communities affected by the Michaung cyclone in the State. “The company’s onsite teams are working along with State government authorities to deliver emergency relief, including food, water, shelter, medical assistance and other essential commodities to affected communities,” it said.

Daimler India Commercial Vehicles (DICV) also closed the factory for two days as a precautionary measure and has resumed operations today.

“As Chennai had an advance alert about the cyclone, we had announced a no-production day on December 4; when we saw the intensity of the rain and the increase in wind speed we declared December 5 also a non-production day so that our workforce could be safe and secure. Today, on December 6, we have resumed production and we are fully functional,” said a company spokesperson.

While most of the factories on the Sriperumbudur or Oragadam corridor have resumed or are in the process of resuming operations, flooding in several other areas of the city has disrupted the staff transportation services.

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