Bajaj Auto is no stranger to steering India’s mobility landscape. As one of the country’s largest two- and three-wheeler manufacturers, the company has spent decades shaping how millions get around. From workhorses like the no-nonsense Boxer commuter, the sporty Pulsar, or the iconic Chetak scooter, which returned in recent years as an electric model.
And speaking of electrics, Bajaj has focused heavily on scooters and three-wheelers, building a solid foothold while keeping a close eye on how the broader motorcycle market evolves. But the company has made it clear that it wants a bigger slice of the electric pie.
And now, Bajaj’s EV playbook looks set to get a big rewrite. Managing Director Rajiv Bajaj recently confirmed that both the Pulsar and Boxer brands are headed for electrification, with a commuter e-bike under the Boxer badge and a sportier electric motorcycle bearing the Pulsar name in the works. That’s quite a big deal, especially in segments where Bajaj admits it’s not yet the overwhelming market leader.
So yeah, it’s easy to see that by leveraging the decades of brand equity these models hold, Bajaj could disrupt categories still largely untapped in the electric space.
The timing is also very interesting because Bajaj is also tightening its grip on KTM. After years of collaboration, including producing KTM’s small- and mid-displacement bikes in India, Bajaj has committed hundreds of millions of euros to rescue KTM from financial trouble. Through its Netherlands-based holding, Bajaj is taking majority control of Pierer Bajaj AG, the entity that controls KTM, Husqvarna, and GasGas.
In short: Bajaj won’t just be building bikes for KTM anymore—it will have a much bigger say in what those bikes are.
That raises some pretty exciting possibilities, to say the least. KTM has been dabbling in electrics for years, from the Freeride E-XC to E-Duke prototypes, and Husqvarna and GasGas have also been showing interest in EVs. With Bajaj’s cost-efficient production, access to emerging markets, and its own push into electric motorcycles, there’s a solid chance we’ll see shared platforms, battery tech, and maybe even modular drivetrains that can be adapted across brands.
Imagine a KTM electric Duke and a Pulsar EV sharing a motor. I mean, in internal combustions speak, this sort of already happened with the KTM 390 Duke and its sort of distant cousin the Bajaj Dominar 400.
For Indian riders, this shift could mean earlier access to more affordable and better-specced electric motorcycles across different styles, brands, and price points. For the rest of the world, especially in Europe, Southeast Asia, and maybe even the US, it could mean a wider selection of electric bikes that blend European design with Indian manufacturing efficiency. And for enthusiasts? It could be the start of a new era where the lines between “budget commuter” and “premium performance” in the electric space get a whole lot blurrier. And that’s a win in my book.
Sources: Storyboard 18, CNBC TV18
