When the Tata Motors first visioned their new car over 4 years back, the cost was put at around Rs.1 lakh before tax. Since then the cost of raw materials have risen manifold, and now the price is expected to be trifle less than $3000 before tax, which is equivalent to about Rs.1,35,000.
The above has been reported by The Economist, the London-based prestigious weekly newsmagazine. This is what the report says (excerpt):
It is not a cut-down version of an existing car, but is an entirely new design. With a rear-mounted 30bhp engine, four seats and a choice of four- and five-door models, it is a “good-looking car which is comfortable to drive,” according to Ravi Kant, the boss of Tata Motors. Most ambitious of all is the price. The car is known as the “one lakh” car—one lakh is 100,000 rupees, equivalent to around $2,100 when the car was first conceived four years ago. Material costs have since increased, but Tata still hopes the price will be less than $3,000 before tax. Read the story here.
The Economist reporter is effusive about India’s designing and engineering ability, specially with respect to China’s tendency of copying other car models. But he strikes an ominous note when he says that once the low-cost car is available in the market, it may become so popular that India’s already over-burdened roads will simply choke.
I can’t help saying that with so much expectations from Tata’s new small car, it is matter of great misfortune that the state’s opposition parties are still carrying on a mindless agitation to thwart the project.
Leave a Reply