Touchstone Partners has advised JSW Sarbloh Motors, a subsidiary of JSW Defence, belonging to the $24 billion JSW Group, on its strategic joint venture with TOMCAR USA, a Phoenix, Arizona-based manufacturer of high-performance tactical all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), which was guided by Khaitan & Co.
The JV focuses on indigenously manufacturing, assembling, and supporting TOMCAR’s TX range of rugged mobility platforms at JSW Sarbloh’s Chandigarh facility. The joint venture was signed on August 13, 2025, with first India-assembled TX units expected by early 2026.
While specific financial terms of the deal remain undisclosed, JSW Sarbloh Motors holds a 70% stake with TOMCAR owning 30% and serving as the technology partner licensing its mission-grade TX platform. The joint venture structures technology transfer, manufacturing, and after-sales support aimed at serving India’s defence, paramilitary, and strategic industrial sectors.
The JV marks a significant enhancement in India’s tactical mobility and defence industrial ecosystem under the government’s Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative promoting indigenous defence manufacturing. TOMCAR’s battlefield-proven engineering combined with JSW’s advanced manufacturing capabilities is expected to drastically reduce dependency on imports for high-performance off-road tactical vehicles.
The TX platform’s operational versatility caters not only to the Indian Armed Forces and Central Armed Police Forces but also to state police and industrial sectors requiring ultra-durable vehicle platforms — including mining, forestry, border patrol, and search-and-rescue applications.
The Touchstone team included partner Anirudh Agarwala, senior associate Kunal Gopal, and associates Rajvee Bavishi, and Viraj Vaidya. Partner Anuj Bhatia and senior associate Palak Chadha advised on transactional intellectual property aspects.
Khaitan’s core team consisted of senior partner Bharat Anand, partners Tanvi Kumar and Nimisha Trehan, and associate Nipun Laroia. They were assisted by partners Nirupam Lodha (intellectual property), Kabir Bogra (defence sector advice) and Shaily Gupta (direct tax).
