The 1-lakh car
The NY Times had a 2 page article about the 1-lakh Rupee "People's car" to be released soon by Tata Motors. It is being highlighted as a feat of engineering, being able to produce something at such a low price.
While there is some truth to that, I feel that not feats of engineering are beneficial. There are innumerable problems, which I am sure some of my Indian friends will concur with.
First is the congestion on the roads. There is close to no space on the roads for the vehicles currently on the streets. Add another million cars, I wouldn't want to be caught in the rush hour with those. Ramanand once talked about the lack of planning inherent with such things in India. He was talking about office space and how anyone can approve so many office buildings when the approach road into that area is clogged every rush hour. The 1 lakh car will be a similar debacle.
Second is parking. On my trips to Pune one of the biggest problems is parking and the second biggest problem is the increase in congestion from vehicles parked haphazardly on the sides of the roads. We hardly have any multi-storey parking structures.
Third issue is the rickshaw phenomenon. I personally think the rickshaw is one of the worst inventions ever. What's more is that rickshaw drivers will use kerosene instead of petrol and emit pollution enough for your eyes to catch. Could a similar effect be seen if we produce so many cheap cars? Gas prices are only going up. Even if you aren't as concerned by global warming, it does cause smog and increases rates of various respiratory disorders.
The only positive could be that assuming the People's car replaces most of the 2 and 3 wheelers, traffic may be more well-behaved.
10 comments:
Am shivering at the thought of the potential onslaught. Even before the launch, the roads are packed - in fact, I would say they are saturated. People say that don't tax the car and hence be unfair to those who earlier could not afford cars, improve public transport instead. But looking at the pace of infrastructure-dev, that's not practical enough. Tax all cars - get them off the road and force planners/politicians to speed up works. Each day, when I sit waiting for the bus to inch forward, my heart sinks further.
Guys - Can you stop people who are buying 2 wheelers? Can you stop the Auto and the tempos or other similar mode in India? Just like RIL changed the way communication was in India this car can change Auto market and possibly the road conditions.
Why do you have to be so much worried about it when you might be a vistior for 1 month. I guess you cant imagine the common man's problems he faces in India. Someone who is not well off and cant afford a lot but still have a wife and 2 kids......let them live not exist.
If you are so worried then go and first ask for more fuel efficient cars in developed countries + better public transportation from point A to point B.
Its sad to see such comments from people who come from India.
Thanks for your comments anonymous.
A) I am worried because I am from Pune, and if the infrastructure were better I would be back there and not here. I also worry for my parents and friends, who have to live through this everyday.
B) I also said that leave aside the global warming issue, this also is problematic within Indian cities too. This will aggravate the situation most likely.
C) The only good argument is what about people with a wife and 2 kids who take two wheelers everyday. Yes they definitely stand to benefit with this new car. Safety may improve for some people.
If the car replaces rickshaws, that would be good.
In Western media there are op-eds regarding the environmental effects of these cars. Not directly about what the cars mean for people in India, but about what they mean for the West.
Boston Brahmin has a cynical take on these op-eds:
http://bbrahmin.blogspot.com/
Enjoy!
I can shoot the same argument about a graphic chiset company. They dont add any value and still does business
Atleast the nano has a positive motive.
Again, this is a chicken and egg problem. If there are more cars ppl will raise question of infrastructure improvement and that inturn will fuel growth for better cars....
I think at this point I should be pround of being an Indian and in awe of the TATAs
Your not being in India due to various problems is your personal choice. U have to be a part of the system to be able to make change. Otherwise you have no right to raise voice against it.
I like your Blog. It was a good read... Btw am Partha from Intelligent Pune.
What I don't understand is why are people unwilling to post their own names on their comments. If you are voicing an opinion, say who you are. If you are ashamed of associating yourself with something you wrote, that is the hallmark of cowardice.
I am entitled to an opinion just as you are. Who is to determine what another person's rights are? You can't and neither can I. Of course the fact that I did publish what I did, implies I have the right to say it. If you don't like freedom of speech, go live in Saudi Arabia.
I agree with your post at cent percent Saket. My recent visit to Pune totally turned me off about that city. Infact i am feeling Pune is most polluted city these days. And even when i traveled in mumbai, i did not feel the pollution that much compared to Pune....time has come to take right steps to control it..else only we are going to suffer from it.
Hey Yogesh. Thanks dude! Yeah true. Actually I realized that my complaints are more against the condition of the roads rather than the car per se. I think there is no space for the cars. But again why should a poor man suffer because some rich people all bought cars sooner than they did? Everyone should be treated the same.
We should adopt a scheme like P1-P2 parking schemes for car usage. Private cars with even numbered plates can be used on 3 days and odd numbered cars can be used on 3 days of the week. This will ensure car-pooling. I know things are never as simple as that, but this does need some thinking out of the box.
Saket, I think you sum up the problems accurately. It's quite true that two wheelers contribute the most to traffic indiscipline in India. Having cars replace some of those might improve the situation. On the other hand as you said, even now getting almost anywhere in Pune in the evening is a nightmare that should pain any reasonable-minded person. My latest trip to India left me completely depressed in this regard. One cannot imagine what would happen with added cars. The point is, we just don't have the infrastructure in many places to widen roads. And yet everyone wants to pack more cars on those roads and build more malls around them without providing for parking space or general space. They should make a systems engineer the head of PMC for some time! On the other hand, he might leave the next day, disgusted with the bureaucracy and the corruption...
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