Why Is Chennai Known As the Detroit of India?

why is chennai known as the detroit of india
The city of Detroit in the state of Michigan, USA is famous for being the world’s traditional automotive centre. A major hub of economic activity, all the significant auto companies have established their bases in the city of Detroit. Out of all automobile manufacturers, the “Big Three” players headquartered in Detroit are General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler.

When it comes to Chennai, the city is also home to these three major auto manufacturers besides being a base to other big auto names. It is responsible for 60% of the nation’s automotive exports as its location near the sea coast is ideal to export goods throughout the South-East Asian region. Not only is the city the hub of automobile manufacturing but is also the commercial, educational, and cultural centre of the nation.

Read also: The Remarkable Growth of Ecommerce Shopping Sector in India

What started with Ford’s major foray back in 1995 has today turned into a breeding ground for top global auto makers including BMW, Daimler, Mitsubishi, Renault-Nissan, Hyundai, etc. Besides being located in close proximity to a large port, several other factors have contributed to making Chennai India’s Detroit – excellent infrastructure, investment-friendly regimes, supply of trained manpower, and flexible industrial policies and incentives for automobile projects. Chennai alone contributes around 39% of the state’s GDP and the automotive sector forms a huge part of it.

But what makes Chennai the Detroit of India in its truest sense is the fact that you can find all sorts of automobiles manufactured here, be it lorries or luxury cars, bikes or battle tanks. For instance – Karur district is the hub of manufacturing bus body parts and the city of Namakkal is the nerve centre for manufacturing lorry parts. Besides the major international auto players holding their bases in Chennai, several major Indian auto manufacturers in the city include Mahindra, Ashok Leyland, Royal Enfield, MRF, etc.

automobiles manufactured chennai
image source: indianexpress.com/article/cities/chennai

Hence, the auto sector is one of the most attractive options for finding jobs in Chennai. The other major industries to find jobs in Chennai include Telecommunications (Nokia, Dell, Samsung, Foxconn, Motorola, etc.), ITES or Information Technology Enabled Services (Cognizant, TCS, Wipro, HCL, IBM, Hewlett-Packard, etc.), medical tourism (Fortis Healthcare, Apollo Hospitals, Madras Medical Mission, Adyar Cancer Institute), banking and finance (Royal Bank of Scotland, Deutsche Bank, Asian Development Bank, Standard Chartered Bank, Citibank, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank), hardware manufacturing industry, petrochemicals, agriculture, textile industry, the city’s fully computerised stock exchange called the Madras Stock Exchange, and the entertainment industry.

If you’re looking to apply for jobs in Chennai in major Multi-national Corporations, then these are the most comely options to choose from – Bridgestone India Automotive Products Pvt. Ltd., Congnizant Technology Solutions, HTC Global Services India Pvt. Ltd., Komatsu India Pvt. Ltd., Panasonic Appliances India Co. Ltd., Saint-Gobain India Pvt. Ltd., Sodexo Technical Services India Pvt. Ltd., Zoho Corporation Pvt. Ltd., etc.

If you’re looking for the best jobs in Chennai, get in touch with Randstad India to land the role of your dreams.

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