Half a dozen international car makers are hoping to enter the Indian market. Here’s why

Many international auto manufacturer are now looking forward to entering the Indian industry and the list includes auto giants like South Korea's Kia Motor, Daihatsu from Toyota, PSA Group's Peugeot Citreon and three car makers from China, Beiqi Foton, SAIC and Changan Automotive, who are devising an India strategy to be part of market set to be the third largest in the world by the end of the decade.

Reportedly, Kia Motor would be the first to announce its entry in India. The company is close to finalising the location in Andhra Pradesh for its plant and is set to launch its cars in India by 2019. Daihatsu and Toyota has just kicked off the emerging markets compact car company to plan products for the emerging markets like India while PSA Group will finalise its India partnership by 2018 with an eye on 2020-2021 roll-out.

Chinese automaker, Beiqi Foton which originally acquired a land in Chakan, Pune, to enter the Indian commercial vehicle space, decided to shift focus and bring in passenger vehicles under Borgward brand. The company has already started discussing with vendors a plan to localise a large Van and clutch of SUVs in India by 2019-2020.

General Motors' Chinese joint venture partner, Shangai Automotive Industry Corporation or SAIC Motor Corporation Limited, is feverishly negotiating with General Motors India to acquire the latter's Halol facility. The negotiation is expected to conclude soon.

Experts feel that the Indian market will see cumulative 60 million cars hitting the roads in the next one decade and clearly they won't be from the Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai stables alone.

"With Chinese market correcting itself and a lot of matured markets seeing marginal growth, India is on everyone's radar. Not only will the market expand, there will be more choices and the competition will further intensify, thereby making consumers the winner,' Gaurav Vangaal, senior analyst for forecasting at IHS Markit Automotive, told ET.

"As we have yet to formally announce any final decision to enter the Indian market, I am afraid that we cannot comment nor confirm any of the rumors as such,” a spokesperson for Kia Motor, told ET.

PSA Group Chairman Carlos Tavares had recently confirmed that India is part of its Push to Pass mid-term plan. The company is learnt to have had talks with Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors, General Motors India and Hindustan Motors for contract manufacturing in India. It is likely to produce cars on contract manufacturing but will sell the cars through its own independent outlets, said one of the eight people cited above. Once the partnership is finalised in 2018, PSA is likely to start selling cars by 2020-2021.

Come October 2017, Indian safety standards are set to be overhauled, which will mandate a frontal and a side crash, making cars more safer and would have a fuel efficiency norm with star rating, which is in the pipelne and finally the biggest change in terms of stringent BS VI emission norms to be implemented by 2020, all this will align Indian market with global stage, which may have led to increased interest say experts.