Ashish Thakur, who was the Global Service Head at Ola Electric, a Bangalore-based electric vehicle manufacturer, has resigned from his position. He has now taken on a new role at TVS Motor Company as the Associate Vice President of Service & Customer Care for their EV division. Thakur brings over 26 years of experience in the field. Before his tenure at Ola Electric, which began in March 2022, he spent more than 23 years at Maruti Suzuki.
Ashish Thakur, the Global Service Head at the Bangalore-based electric vehicle manufacturer Ola Electric, resigned from the company last month. Thakur played a crucial role in developing Ola’s service department from the ground up and establishing the direct-to-consumer business model. His professional history spans over 26 years in the sector, with less than three years at Ola, known for its S1 series of electric scooters. Before his stint with Ola Electric, which started in March 2022, Thakur was employed at Maruti Suzuki for more than 23 years, serving as the regional and zonal service head across various regions of India. He has now taken a role at TVS Motor Company as the Associate Vice President of Service & Customer Care for the EV business.
The electric two-wheeler market in India is seeing heightened competition, with manufacturers like Ola Electric leading in sales volumes, followed closely by established companies such as TVS Motor and Bajaj Auto. However, Ola has experienced a significant drop in market share in recent months due to increasing competition.
Recent challenges at Ola include a surge in customer service complaints, with the company’s service centers receiving around 80,000 complaints monthly, leading to extended wait times and increased dissatisfaction among customers. The situation escalated following a public social media exchange involving Ola’s CEO, Bhavish Aggarwal, and stand-up comedian Kunal Kamra, which drew attention to the company’s service quality issues.
Moreover, Ola Electric faced regulatory scrutiny when it received a show-cause notice from the Central Consumer Protection Authority for potential consumer rights violations, misleading advertisements, and unfair trade practices after over 10,000 complaints were lodged with the National Consumer Helpline.
Following an incorrect claim by Ola Electric that 99.1% of customer issues were resolved, a cross-verification by the authority contradicted this assertion. Consequently, the Consumer Affairs Ministry has directed further investigations into Ola Electric by the Director General Investigation of the CCPA.
The electric two-wheeler segment continues to dominate India’s EV market, recording substantial sales growth and it is expected that competition will further increase as companies launch diverse models to capture the expanding consumer base.
