The new Tata Nano car

Tata Nano has finally been announced at two elaborate media events in India. “We have made a promise and we have kept that promise,” Ratan Tata, chairman of the Tata Group, said during the first press gathering, held in the Taj Hotel.
The Nano has been nicknamed “The People’s Car” because its starting price will make it accessible to more Indians than any other new car on the market. But the ultra-cheap, ultra-compact Nano comes with no frills. It runs on a 623-cc 2-cylinder engine with about 30 horsepower. Power steering and power brakes are optional on the base model. Airbags, antilock brakes and even a radio aren’t available at all.
Tata Nano will come as Standard Variant BS II, Nano CX and Nano LX. The standard variant will sport a price tag of Rs. 1 lakh for the first 1 lakh cars produced. The transportation cost, insurance, road tax and other charges will be charged extra. Thus the on-road price for the base variant is expected Rs. 1.23 lakh and above depending upon the city. The Nano Delhi price for the base variant is Rs. 1,23,560. The Nano CX variant is priced at Rs. 1.48 lakh and the LX variant will cost Rs. 1,70,335.
The first models arrive in dealer showrooms in early April. Application forms to register to buy the car will be accepted from April 9-25. And for the first time in company history, Tata Motors will charge a fee (about $6) to anyone who applies to buy the car.
First deliveries of the Nano to customers will occur in July. This news comes after what has already been more than six months of production delays. Political protests over the company’s land acquisition methods forced Tata to abandon a nearly complete factory built for Nano production in the state of West Bengal. Rather than risk provoking the situation, Tata decided to base Nano production elsewhere.
One uncomfortable aspect of the Nano’s cost-cutting regime — and an exceedingly awkward moment during a Q & A session held during the early press event — was the importance of India’s cheap labor. An executive huddle followed a journalist’s query, which lead to another mad scramble among hundreds of photographers eager to capture the situation. Ravi Kant, managing director of Tata Motors, finally stated that the yearly salary of a Nano factory worker is 150,000 rupees – or less than $3,000.