After years of promising, Chairman of the Tata Group, Ratan Tata finally made good on his promise with the words "A promise is a promise" and delivered the world's cheapest four door car at a cost of One Hundred thousand Indian Rupees ($2500) with a mileage of 23km/liter (50 miles/gallon) and a seating capacity of 4 to 5 people.
With an unveiling any corporate media manager would die for, the world media and car industry representatives sat holding their breath as they came to watch Mr. Tata, now top bidder for luxury car brands Jaguar and Land Rover drive in on a marvel which makes driving a car affordable to the majority of the middle class in India. Laughing off the hype and skepticism from critics and competitors and not to forget rising manufacturing costs, Mr. Tata rolled out the Tata Nano. Suzuki officials had to eat their words from last year when they stated it was impossible to build a $2500 car.
Recently having been listed among the 25 most powerful people in business by Fortune magazine in November 2007, Mr. Ratan Tata might just have reinvented the car for a vast majority of the world's population which always saw the car beyond their means. With Tata Nano's rolling of the production line later this year and with plans to export to Latin America, South East Asia and Africa soon, Tata might be the new synonym for cars.
Already critics have spoken out against the car. They say India does not have the infrastructure or the necessary urban planning to accommodate the flood of Tata Nanos expected to flood the country. Others say it will be taxing on the environment, but with emissions which conform to Indian and European standard which are one of the most stringent in the world, the car takes the cake. Most of the protests are hollow at large, when one thinks where was all this outcry and hue against influx of cars when Ford and other foreign manufacturers setup manufacturing plants for produce petrol and diesel guzzling cars for the Indian roads? Is it suddenly the "have-its" are all worried they won't have space on the road to drive their super fast and over sized fuel guzzlers with these small Nano's being driven by the once "have-nots"! Hypocrisy is at its best when there is an outcry at a fuel efficient 33 hp car when there should be a global ban on Hummers, Escalades and other big brand fuel guzzlers.
An article in the American magazine Newsweek states "Western environmentalists know they have little moral standing to criticize Indians for wanting cars, particularly one that meets the highest Western emissions standards. But they're rattled in part because they didn't see this coming, and will have to recalculate projections for the buildup of greenhouse gases based on a world of many more drivers."
In India, owning a car puts the owner up the social ladder a few notches and now a car is available for little more than a high end scooter or motorbike which is the main mode of transport for many Indian families. Are people scared of the notches being lowered a few notches since most middle class can own cars? Most critics have their own luxury cars to drive off in after their say in the press conferences. But India's middle class once again hail the family who have over the years contributed tirelessly to the society at large with their huge social endowments and business which treats employees as family. Ratan Tata echoed his family's commitment to India's masses when he stated at the launch "“We need to think of our masses. Should they be denied the right to an individual form of transport?” It is not just a rich man's dream to drive his own car, every person has a dream of driving their own cars and this car might just be the answer to those dreams in India, Latin America, South East Asia and not to forget the dark continent which has been little more than a dumping ground for obsolete technology and vehicles from around the world.
Speaking at the launch, Ratan Tata said: "I observed families riding on two-wheelers - the father driving the scooter, his young kid standing in front of him, his wife seated behind him holding a little baby."
"It led me to wonder whether one could conceive of a safe, affordable, all-weather form of transport for such a family. Tata Motors' engineers and designers gave their all for about four years to realise this goal. Today, we indeed have a People's Car, which is affordable and yet built to meet safety requirements and emission norms, to be fuel efficient and low on emissions. We are happy to present the People's Car to India and we hope it brings the joy, pride and utility of owning a car to many families who need personal mobility."
Mr. Tata has just made the "car" affordable to millions in a single stroke, yet now the world waits to see what he has in store if he is able to materialize his dreams of acquiring Jaguar and Land Rover. This is truly history in the making. If the Model T by Ford in 1907 is regarded as the first affordable automobile, the car that "put America on wheels"; then the Tata Nano will be remembered as the India's first affordable car which put India on wheels.
Related Articles:
World's cheapest car unveiled ~ The Independent
1 lakh car drives 1 billion dreams ~ The Indian Express
It's a car, not an apology ~ Times of India
Interview with Ratan Tata ~ Times of India
US gives a grudging thumbs-up to Tata's Nano ~ Times of India
Thank you, Mr Tata, for thinking of the common man! ~ Rediff.com
India Driving ~ Hindustan Times
Ratan Tata: Hero to a nation starved of heroes ~ Rediff news.com
How Green is a Mini? ~ Newsweek
Tata Nano to dampen demand for bikes, second-hand cars ~ Reuters India
1 comment:
Cheaper cars.
"Tata" to the environment
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