How Green is a Mini?

If the Tata Nano does less pollution than a SCOOTER then how is it polluting more? People who use scooters can switch to a Tata Nano as it is cheaper in fuel and only slightly more expensive in price. Let me tell you the whole of California does more pollution than the whole of India. In total, America does 22 times more pollution than India. Americans always talk about Global warming but do nothing. I also remember there is this organisation in Indian that raised enough money to power 75 villages with solar power. Has America ever done anything like that? They either blame global warming on cows or on India. 4% of the world's pollution comes from india yet 17% of the world's population is from India.

Who are we in the west to criticize Indians or the Chinese for that matter for wanting the same level of consumerism we enjoy? The fact that it's not sustainable seems so much more obvious when we do the math, 2 billion cars by 2020. So where is the support for converting to electric drive vehicles powered by renewable energy? Visit websites like EVtransPortal.com and find out what changes are available. For example by adding plug in receptacles at truck stops in the US we could dramatically reduce CO2 emissions from idling trucks right now- 6,000 gallons a year PER UNIT installed, yet only 2% of US trucks are equipped to plug in. For more information visit EVtransPortal.com/cerip.html

How green is a mini (Tata's Nano)? And I shall ask How green is a pick up truck (let's say, Ford's F150)?

Taco Papica
Philippines

In unveiling his dream Nano, Tata is well on the journey to put India???s middle class on the global map of ???haves???. Despite all the initial, allegedly politically-motivated agitations and aggressive stance of the locals in Singur, West Bengal, against the Tatas setting up their Nano plant there, regardless of the cynical naysayers and Tata-bashers in the political, business and media world, Tata remained doggedly focussed on his dream goal of presenting the promised Rs. 1 lakh car to the common man in India. It???s Ratan Tata who is having the last laugh today. A word of advice to all the self-styled armchair auto critics -- do not look for the benefits of an apple (read that as the middle-ranged Maruti, Honda or Hyundai) in a guava (read that as the impressive-looking Nano). For Pete???s sake, enjoy the guava for what it is! What is striking about an iron-willed Tata???s business strategy is that instead of tom-tomming in the media the logistics of manufacturing his promised Rs 1 lakh car, he played his cards close to his chest, ignored the raised hackles of jealous rivals and envious entrepreneurs and went and built his dream car! (Reliance???s head honcho, Mukesh Ambani, needs to learn a lesson or two from Tata. His dream project, Reliance Fresh, would not have met with such nation-wide resistence, hostility and sabotage attempts from all quarters - government, traders, middlemen, misinformed farmers - had he executed his plans for the Reliance Fresh wisely and quietly.) Today, being in the eye of the world is like being in the eye of a storm. Unfortunately, instead of admiring and appreciating a fellow Indian???s efforts to create history in the global business world, competition is breeding more than its fair share of envy and jealousy. If India is to reach its attainable goal of being a global superpower, the armchair critics and cynics will have to stop indulging in negative posturing. Hats off to Ratan Tata. He has lived up to his name.

Kanan Divecha, Mumbai, India

If Henry Ford had invented the assembly line in these times, he would have faced the same criticism of bringing the car to the masses. What Rata Tata and his company did is similar to the assembly line innovation, it is going to change the way cars are designed and manufactured the world over.