IT'S a car that has no emissions. No engine, no clutch, no gears and no radiator or exhaust. REVA, the first electric car to be mass-produced in India, will be the lowest priced car on Indian roads when launched in Bangalore in the middle of this year.

Being an environment friendly product, the Government of Karnataka has waived the road tax on REVA. Further companies that buy the car for their use will benefit from 100 percent depreciation in the first year. Though the final price of REVA has yet to be declared, the manufacturers inform that it will certainly be below Rs 2 lakh. If the word 'REVA' rings a bell, it's because there had been a flourish of press reports about the car in 1996\early 1997.

The euphoria of having built an electric car that was commercially viable here in Bangalore was so great that the REVA was showcased at a major exhibition in the city - INDIA-2010 - held at Palace Grounds in December 1996. When nothing was heard about the product thereafter, consumers presumed there was something wrong. "There was nothing wrong with the product," says Vijay Chandy, vice president, REVA Electric Car Company.

"After the car was showcased as a prototype, we felt that a high degree of indigenisation would be necessary to make it affordable. Two years down the line, today, out of the 1,100 components in the car, 95 percent will be manufactured in India. By the end of the second year of production, RECC should achieve indigenisation close to 100 percent." REVA - which in Sanskrit means "new beginning" - is the brainchild of SK Maini, chairman of the Bangalore based Main Group.

Maini says, "As far as 30 years ago, I felt that India needed affordable small cars for personal transportation within our fast-growing cities. The harsh road conditions and high degree of traffic congestion in urban areas strengthened this belief.

But I did not imagine that pollution caused by vehicles would become the major problem it is today."

In 1990, when Maini's son Chetan, who was studying in USA, became leader of the Solar Car Team that won the GM Sun Race and stood 3rd in the World Solar Changes in Australia, the senior Maini realised that a small car built as an electric vehicle would be ideal for Indian cities; the additional benefits of being zero polluting and quite noiseless. Through a joint venture, the Maini Group along with Amerigon Inc. a technology company made REVA a reality.

Considering the pitiable condition of roads in Bangalore and the non-availability of power in this city, wouldn't it be wiser to launch the car elsewhere?Chetan Maini, MD of RECC, replies: "REVA has been widely tested on Bangalore roads for the past three years and can take the harshness very well in its stride. REVA has also passed the 250,000 km shaker test at the Automobile Research Association (ARAI), Pune." As for the non-availability of power in Bangalore, Chetan Maini calls it "a myth." He elaborates, "All of us know that load shedding (whenever it does take place) is well before we retire for the night. REVAn can be charged anytime anywhere but the normal pattern would be when someone parks it for the night or when one is at work. REVA charges and cuts off automatically.

" The payload of REVA is 227 kg ideal for two adults and two children. The prototype that had been exhibited in 1996 was improved upon so that the seating space available for the rear passengers could be increased and now the car can seat two up to a height of 5'6 at the back. Already much excitement is being generated about REVA. The car was put on display at 'Cul-ah 2000', the youth intercollegiate cultural festival held at Mount Carmel College earlier this month.

In a tie-in contest, couples were asked to strike an unusual pose in or around the car. And no, the winner was not awarded a car but a 1,000-rupee Shoppers' Stop gift voucher and a few tee-shirts.

- Ingrid Albuquerque