During the 1970s and 1980s HMT was the largest supplier of wrist watches in India, with popular styles including Janata and Pilot.

Technology was absorbed in all product groups through collaborations with world-renowned manufacturers and further strengthened by continuous in-house R&D.

Today, HMT consists of six subsidiaries under the ambit of a holding company, which also manages the tractor business directly.

The first batch of mechanical (hand wound) wrist watches manufactured here was released by the then Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru.

To cater to the niche market, a specialised watch case manufacturing facility was set up at Bangalore in 1983.

While in the 1980s several new companies entered the market with newer designs and more modern production techniques, HMT is said to have been hobbled by slow decision making and was unable to compete.

[14] Machine tools divisions of HMT in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Kochi (Kalamassery) are still operational and catering industrial and defence sectors of India and abroad.

HMT's tractor business commenced its operations in 1971 in technical collaboration with Zetor through a licensing deal with Motokov, the export trading arm of Czechoslovakia.

Machine tools divisions of HMT is still continuing its operations and introducing state of the art technologies in Indian industrial market.