India's Mahindra eyeing Hummer?

Indian automobile industry is spreading its wings beyond the Pacific and seems to be in discussion with General Motors to buy out the Hummer brand.

The discussions are at a "very embryonic stage" between General Motors and two Indian automobile giants Tata and Mahindra & Mahindra and the representative spokesmen are maintaining the "no comment" status on the issue.

"Indian automotive industry is on a roll and doesn't seem to be stopping at the takeover of Jaguar and Land Rover by Tata automobiles," said Tony Sharma, an ex-Hummer official, who is now based in India on a "special assignment".

According to industry speculations, General Motors is planning to offload its gas-guzzling Hummer brand to two Indian firms.

Hummer, originally a product of AMC, was bought over as a brand by General Motors and after initial success, the last year has seen the largest decline in the Hummer appeal with GM reporting 29.6 per cent decline in Hummer demand in the United States – the largest since the American automobile giants took over the brand.

Indian media has also reported speculative reports on the subject and The Economic Times, world's largest circulated financial newspaper from India, has narrowed down the choice to the two most obvious companies – Tata Motors and Mahindra & Mahindra.