On 23rd of May the most misnomed car was launched in India. No brownies for guessing, it was TATA Nano. I call it a misnomer because, for me the word nano stands for new technology more than it does for being tiny. In that sense TATA Nano is the biggest failure from all standards. Somebody had rightly pointed out its an auto – rickshaw with an extra wheel. Quite literally it is!
If TATA had achieved this feat of producing the cheapest car with new technology which is exciting and eco friendly I would have gone gaga over it. Unfortunately TATA Nano is nothing but 4 wheels, an engine, space just enough for 4 below average sized persons to sit through for 1 hour which is usually commuting time of TATA’s target customers. I really wonder why an automobile manufacturing company had to produce it and create such hype about it. I bet my roadside mechanic would give me a car with much more gizmos and that too for cheaper price.
Even after saying all that I am not completely against TATA Nano. First of all for the motivation behind Ratan Tata’s decision to produce a car for Rs 1,00,000 (1 lakh or 1 hundred thousands). In his own words, “Today's story started some years ago when I observed families riding on two wheelers, the father driving a scooter, his young kid standing in front of him, his wife sitting behind him holding a baby, and I asked myself whether one could conceive of a safe, affordable, all-weather form of transport for such a family. A vehicle that could be within everybody's reach, built to meet all safety standards, designed to meet or exceed emission norms and low in pollution and high in fuel efficiency. I am happy we are at the threshold of achieving that dream.” Click here. If what Ratan Tata said was really true, my heartfelt thanks to Mr Tata.
I have seen such scary scenes in Mysore, a small town which I hail from, though not in a city like Mumbai. In both of the cities there are people who would love to own a car but can’t really afford the ones which are there already. If their dream of owning a car comes true through TATA Nano, I believe no one has any right to object it.
Among the common criticisms I hear about TATA Nano, two criticisms are dominant.
1. It will worsen the traffic in the cities which is already fucking crazy
2. It will add to the pollution
Let me talk about Traffic problem in cities. In a city like Mumbai traffic is frustrating. It takes the living day lights out of your life. The reason for such an unbearable traffic is, of course, poor infrastructure. But let’s face it, even if the best infrastructure is provided, people here will still have their traffic woes. That is because prime reason for traffic here is traffic sense of the people driving on the road rather than the poor infrastructure. Since I travel a distance 50 km on these dreaded roads every day, I think I have a better idea of why traffic jams happen in my city. Everybody wants to cut through the traffic and overtake the guy in front of them. I can’t understand why it doesn’t strike to these people’s heads that going with the traffic eases the situation for everyone. Looking at jammed roads one can’t help but think why people are more interested in blocking the roads for others than going ahead. People here have this wrong notion that they wouldn’t reach their place on time if they let anybody overtake them. So his/her sole purpose is not to let anybody overtake him/her and overtake the person in front of them so that he would feel he’s going faster than others. Bloody competition! Unfortunately the person in front also thinks exactly like the one behind. Ultimately traffic jams are caused by these moronic thoughts in people’s head.
Now, how justified is these people’s apprehension about traffic jams because of TATA Nanos on roads?
Coming to the second criticism about TATA Nano i.e. pollution. Authentic reports say that pollution caused by TATA Nano is almost at par with a two wheeler. So if guy with a two wheeler switches to TATA Nano, is that a problem for anyone? Moreover, these high end cars we see on roads cause pollution which might be equal to the pollution caused by 10 Nanos. Would these people who are so concerned about environment pollution dump their Hond or Merc in garage and use TATA Nano for daily commuting at least? I see people coming with their sedans to office but they have a problem if a person comes in a Nano. How justified is these people’s concern about environment?
I have to quote here a person who had commented on some other blog. He writes, “So India can raise its standard of living, and this is considered a bad thing? If people in the US bought these cars instead of their gas guzzlers, we’d all be celebrating.” Click here. I don’t think it needs any more explanation!
At the end of the day it remains a fact that TATA Nano was a wasted opportunity. A cheapest car could have also been a car with innovative technology that doesn’t compromise on driving quality. Lack of vision, innovation, interest and more importantly downright business-mindedness made a golden opportunity go in vain. But if an average Indian feels happy for owning a car irrespective of its drive quality, I don’t think morally we have a right to crib about TATA Nanos quality or its any other features.
If TATA had achieved this feat of producing the cheapest car with new technology which is exciting and eco friendly I would have gone gaga over it. Unfortunately TATA Nano is nothing but 4 wheels, an engine, space just enough for 4 below average sized persons to sit through for 1 hour which is usually commuting time of TATA’s target customers. I really wonder why an automobile manufacturing company had to produce it and create such hype about it. I bet my roadside mechanic would give me a car with much more gizmos and that too for cheaper price.
Even after saying all that I am not completely against TATA Nano. First of all for the motivation behind Ratan Tata’s decision to produce a car for Rs 1,00,000 (1 lakh or 1 hundred thousands). In his own words, “Today's story started some years ago when I observed families riding on two wheelers, the father driving a scooter, his young kid standing in front of him, his wife sitting behind him holding a baby, and I asked myself whether one could conceive of a safe, affordable, all-weather form of transport for such a family. A vehicle that could be within everybody's reach, built to meet all safety standards, designed to meet or exceed emission norms and low in pollution and high in fuel efficiency. I am happy we are at the threshold of achieving that dream.” Click here. If what Ratan Tata said was really true, my heartfelt thanks to Mr Tata.
I have seen such scary scenes in Mysore, a small town which I hail from, though not in a city like Mumbai. In both of the cities there are people who would love to own a car but can’t really afford the ones which are there already. If their dream of owning a car comes true through TATA Nano, I believe no one has any right to object it.
Among the common criticisms I hear about TATA Nano, two criticisms are dominant.
1. It will worsen the traffic in the cities which is already fucking crazy
2. It will add to the pollution
Let me talk about Traffic problem in cities. In a city like Mumbai traffic is frustrating. It takes the living day lights out of your life. The reason for such an unbearable traffic is, of course, poor infrastructure. But let’s face it, even if the best infrastructure is provided, people here will still have their traffic woes. That is because prime reason for traffic here is traffic sense of the people driving on the road rather than the poor infrastructure. Since I travel a distance 50 km on these dreaded roads every day, I think I have a better idea of why traffic jams happen in my city. Everybody wants to cut through the traffic and overtake the guy in front of them. I can’t understand why it doesn’t strike to these people’s heads that going with the traffic eases the situation for everyone. Looking at jammed roads one can’t help but think why people are more interested in blocking the roads for others than going ahead. People here have this wrong notion that they wouldn’t reach their place on time if they let anybody overtake them. So his/her sole purpose is not to let anybody overtake him/her and overtake the person in front of them so that he would feel he’s going faster than others. Bloody competition! Unfortunately the person in front also thinks exactly like the one behind. Ultimately traffic jams are caused by these moronic thoughts in people’s head.
Now, how justified is these people’s apprehension about traffic jams because of TATA Nanos on roads?
Coming to the second criticism about TATA Nano i.e. pollution. Authentic reports say that pollution caused by TATA Nano is almost at par with a two wheeler. So if guy with a two wheeler switches to TATA Nano, is that a problem for anyone? Moreover, these high end cars we see on roads cause pollution which might be equal to the pollution caused by 10 Nanos. Would these people who are so concerned about environment pollution dump their Hond or Merc in garage and use TATA Nano for daily commuting at least? I see people coming with their sedans to office but they have a problem if a person comes in a Nano. How justified is these people’s concern about environment?
I have to quote here a person who had commented on some other blog. He writes, “So India can raise its standard of living, and this is considered a bad thing? If people in the US bought these cars instead of their gas guzzlers, we’d all be celebrating.” Click here. I don’t think it needs any more explanation!
At the end of the day it remains a fact that TATA Nano was a wasted opportunity. A cheapest car could have also been a car with innovative technology that doesn’t compromise on driving quality. Lack of vision, innovation, interest and more importantly downright business-mindedness made a golden opportunity go in vain. But if an average Indian feels happy for owning a car irrespective of its drive quality, I don’t think morally we have a right to crib about TATA Nanos quality or its any other features.
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