Dare to Copy?

In one of our all employee meets, also called "Townhall" meetings for reasons oblivious to me , Our top brass discussed about piracy of almost anything in China. He specifically was mentioning the blatant copying of vehicles designs by Chinese vehicle manufacturers. These vehicles definitely cannot match the quality of their original counterparts but in some cases come close in terms of looks and appeal. They are much cheaper because a lot less is spent on RnD of the vehicle. Most of the things are just copied verbatim without too much indepth understanding of the underlying systems. However, I can proudly tell that there is one car which the chinese cannot dare to copy. That is because the car is already the cheapest. If anyone can make it any cheaper then it would be a miracle.

Yeah, I am talking about the Tata Nano. The Nano which is offered in three variants will cost less than the cheapest car in India ( i.e. Maruthi 800) for the Lx version which is equipped with power windows, AC and body colored bumpers. I had never believed that Tata would really pull this one off but as a matter of fact the Tata's have done it. So have the Tatas done a Chinese act....or will the car really deliver to the Indian needs....Only time will tell....

Mantriji was once heard quoting on the issue of plagiarism

"If you copy from one person then we call it plagiarism, if you copy from many then it is research"

Nano is coming.....-

This article in rediff triggered my thinking to the extremes of getting me write this post.

The TATA nano is really going to bring some changes in the perception of the four-wheeler in India. The Four-Wheeler in India for a long time has been something that shows a person's economic status. It reminds me of something that had happened about 8-10 years back, when Reliance changed the way the we lookup at mobile phones. Almost everyone had a mobile and it no more remained a status symbol.

There are many different perceptions as to what will happen after Nano is launched....Some of them are here.

>> It will be a common mans car and people will discard their bikes and think about owning a four-wheeler
>> Auto- Rickshaws will transform into a TATA Nano.
>> A lot of new business avenues and new business models will emerge.

What i see is something which is perhaps at the back of everyone's mind but no one wants to accept it.

1. More bigger vehicles on our roads will only add to the crowd on the streets. Already there are sufficient traffic jams in Bangalore.
2. More pollution and added burden on fuel supplies.

Does that mean i am against Nano...Definitely not. However, i feel growth should always be controlled and well governed. So what are my views on this

1. Let Nano be introduced in towns against Auto-Rickshaws, but provide ensure that the 3-wheelers are either pushed to village area's or remote area's where there is no service. Allowing Nano and the 3-wheeler would definitly choke our roads.
2. Control registration of cheaper vehicles so that we do not proliferate them. This doesn't mean that a comman man cannot own a Nano. It only means that it will take more time maybe.
   
3. Ban 3-Wheelers in places where Nano Taxis are allowed and visa-versa.
4. Have very strict pollution control norms for all kinds of public vehicle. This is because they spend more time on the road than personal vehicles. 

Well I am sure in this recession when everyone is thinking about conserving cash, People will blindly put their money on this car!!