As their flagship heavy vehicle manufacturer Ashok Leyland celebrated its diamond jubilee, the Hindujas Monday announced plans to acquire related businesses in Europe and the Middle East.

The group chairman S P Hinduja said that their objective was to make Ashok Leyland as one of the five top commercial vehicle manufacturers in the world within in the next 10 years.

The diamond jubilee of the company was celebrated here last night at a function presided over by the State Governor S S Barnala  and attended by Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram, who used the occasion to emphasise that people in India should make greater use of public transport and travel less by private vehicles.

In a message, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Ashok Leyland has responded very well to the transportation of a growing economy in the last 60 years.

It had introduced products and technologies for different segments of the society, he said, adding that the performan ce of companies like Ashok Leyland has given India a preeminent position in the global automobile industry.  The company, the prime minister said, has also served vital needs of the country's defence forces.