Consumers frequently changing TVs, home appliances: Assocham
Consumers are changing their TVs and home appliances more frequently, with many of them seeing their income rise due to the Sixth Pay Commission and Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, a report said.
Due to the execution of sixth pay commission, salaries of about 5 million central government employees have been revised by an average of 21 per cent, it said.
Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) previously known as NREGA has provided employment to over 47 million households from 2008-09 onwards and significantly increased the purchasing power of individuals, it said.
"Replacement cycle for TV sets and home appliances before 2008-09 was 9 years and 12 years, respectively. But now it has fallen to about 4-5 years and 7-8 years," Assocham Secretary General D S Rawat said.
The report also asked the manufacturers of televisions and domestic appliances to offer low cost products to tap a larger pie of 121 million households.
It also said that under Bharat Nirman Project, the government is expected to electrify about 1,25,000 villages, construction of 146,185 km of new rural roads, telephone connectivity to 66,822 villages are likely to be provided.
"All these promised initiatives will open up markets for consumer electronics and appliances, such as televisions, audios, refrigerators, air coolers and air conditioners," it added.
source: http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/consumers-frequently-changing-tvs-home-appliances-assocham/99263/on