Piyush Arora to succeed Gurpratap Boparai as ŠKODA AUTO Volkswagen India MD

ŠKODA AUTO Volkswagen India has a new managing director after Gurpratap Boparai called it quits just two years into the group’s ambitious India 2.0 project. Piyush Arora, the new MD, will now be responsible for expanding the Volkswagen Group’s (VW) business in India.

The VW group in late 2019 announced the merger of their three Indian subsidiaries—Volkswagen India, Volkswagen Group Sales India and ŠKODA AUTO India—into a single entity called ŠKODA Auto Volkswagen India (SAVWIPL), headquartered at Pune. The combined entity oversees the business operations of five brands – ŠKODA, Volkswagen, Audi, Porsche and Lamborghini. The group shelled out €1 billion for the project, one of the largest investments in the Indian automotive sector and also tried to solve one of its biggest problems: localisation. 

Under its ambitious India 2.0 project, all VW and ŠKODA models designed and produced locally will be based on its global MQB platform helping it form better synergies and streamline decision-making at the management level.
 

“I would like to thank Gurpratap Boparai for his outstanding performance as Managing Director of ŠKODA AUTO Volkswagen India Private Limited. I wish him all the best for the future. At the same time, I would like to extend a warm welcome to Piyush Arora. I am delighted that we have found a highly experienced professional to lead the India business. His task will be to advance and sustainably expand the Volkswagen Group’s business in India. I am convinced that he will succeed in this endeavour and wish him every success,” Thomas Schäfer, CEO of ŠKODA AUTO, said.

The group saw two successful product launches under Boparai– the Škoda Kushaq and VW Taigun. The company said 2022 will see important events for all Volkswagen Group brands. Volkswagen and ŠKODA will finalise the rollout of the India 2.0 project with the ŠKODA SLAVIA and a Notchback from Volkswagen, including commencing exports of the India 2.0 vehicles across the globe.

“It is my pleasure to welcome Piyush Arora into the India leadership team. 2021 has been a year of growth for SAVWIPL. Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic and the global chip shortage, we recorded a 76 per cent growth across our five brands. I am confident that Piyush Arora’s proven leadership will help us further build on this strong momentum and continue on a sustainable growth path in 2022 and the years ahead,” Christian Cahn von Seelen, Chairman, SAVWIPL, said.

Arora has been working in the automotive industry for more than 30 years and has extensive knowledge of the Indian market. He began his career at Tata Motors and later joined Mercedes-Benz India, where he held several senior positions, including the Supervisory Board positions at Mercedes-Benz Indonesia and Mercedes-Benz Vietnam, while overseeing their operations. His last held position was Executive Director and Head of Operations at Mercedes-Benz India.