Calcutta, May 9: Honda is betting big on the BR-V, a compact SUV developed for the local market, to boost flagging sales.

The company's sales grew 2 per cent to 1,92,059 units in 2015-16 from 1,89,062 units in the previous fiscal. It missed the 2-lakh mark owing to a decline in sales in the last quarter. Sales plunged 23 per cent in March.

"January-March has been a very tough quarter for the entire industry. There were a number of factors that affected our sales, including the uncertainty around diesel and the price increase because of infrastructure cess. Besides, we as manufacturers have a very complex supply chain mechanism that cannot be adjusted to immediate market changes," said Jnaneswar Sen, vice-president (marketing) of Honda Cars India Ltd.

The BR-V is a big launch for the company, which plans to unveil four models this year. Of these, the new Amaze has already hit the market in March. The BR-V was launched on May 5. The Accord will be reintroduced sometime later this year, followed by a new version of the Brio.

"We are very excited about the BR-V, we think it's going to be a winner because we are offering a very premium product with segment first features," Sen said. The seven-seater BR-V will compete with segment leaders Hyundai Creta and Renault Duster.

"It's not just about seven seats, which I think is a very important feature giving the customers the flexibility of seating and space. The BR-V has very bold looks on the exterior with very plush interiors and we have got a very good response to the vehicle at the Delhi Auto Expo," he said.

The BR-V is based on an extended Brio platform with design cues from the Mobilio. The company had initially planned to bring in its small SUV, the HR-V, but it was scrapped.

Both the Brio and the Mobilio have failed to bring in the numbers.