Now that the heat and dust have settled down after the launch of Nano, I feel the need to express my thoughts. The Nano has done more for Brand India and the Image of Indian Manufacturing and for India Inc in recent times than any single thing / event / product. Of course IT and ITES have raised India’s economic and intellectual profile but Nano is the culmination of efforts of just one company and the vision of one individual. You can never expect General Motors or Toyoto or Ford to design or built a car for less than USD 2500. What would they make on that kind of sticker price? You are right, peanuts!!. These companies are busy building SUVs and luxury cars to a pampered lot of customers who have the purchasing power. For them, the rule is more fancier or bigger the car, bigger the profit. What can you make on USD 2500? At best may be USD 250 which is not good enough for any MNC automobile giant. The idea could have come only to someone who has his roots in a developing country and gets the inspiration to meet the needs of the common people and solve the problems of a developing country.
Consider the long term impacts. I would imagine GM and Ford and not to forgot Suzuki, who tried to snub Tata, would be swallowing their egos and start designing their own versions of Nano. But then Tata would have a head start and would bring out the electric version of Nano and may be also the Plug In Electric Hybrid version of the Nano. This will make even the environmentalists who belittled the Nano eat an humble pie.
If the Fords and General Motors come to India with their fancy cars and expect the road infrastructure to be made suitable for the cars needed for a growing economy, is it not a sad irony that Nano is to be blamed for all the congestion it would cause for so many two wheelers would be replaced by Nano. It is for the government to regulate the transportation sector and choose the optimal mix between public transport and private vehicles. Nano is the product of commercial enterprise and if the customers go for it and if it gives the MNC auto giants a run for their money, so be it. The future market for cars is in the developing world and the Nano is suitable for this market, not just because it is made for the smaller physical frames of orientals.
We have a Mahatma Gandhi who made Einstein wonder that such a man ever walked on earth and we have a Vishwanathan Anand who inspired a whole generation of Chess Champions. We have the Nano now which can be the symbol for emerging prowess of Indian Manufacturing and can be the rallying spirit that all is not lost in manufacturing and can inspire India to compete with China in manufacturing itself. India has built its own economic model with IT and ITES, different from that of its Asian neighbours with low cost manufacturing and now India can show it to the World that the Nano is a paradigm shift in the Motor Car since Henry Ford rolled out its Model T. Of course, the market for Nano has to be created in India first and the government can certainly support these efforts with Nano friendly regulations. How about, lower life tax or no life tax for vehicle registration or exemption from excise duties and sales tax or allocation of preferred parking spots to Nanos.
