Rajat Paul
Like other metro cities of India there is city in North-eastern state of Assam bordering Arunachal Pradesh, named 'Tinsukia' where the 'king of Indian roads' is still ruling the city roads, thus making the last city of Assam & North-East to have 'Hindustan Ambassador' as fare taxis.
Let us look into the legacy of Ambassador: Ambassador or “Amby” as it became popularly known in the 1990s and 2000s was the true example of early 'Make in India' almost half a century before the terminology even came into existence. Ambassador, enduring symbol of post-Independence India was India’s answer to all its problems – bad potholed roads, big-fat Indian families and easy to fix by any low-skilled mechanicwas India’s answer to all its problems – bad potholed roads, big-fat Indian families and easy to fix by any low-skilled mechanic. The burly, stately-looking, sturdy car was a symbol of the quintessential Indian family as well as the powerful elite. It was probably the only India-made vehicle that bridged the class divide. The Ambassador was what India wanted to be – strong and dependable and that is the reason behind the title of ‘King of Indian Roads’.
The Hindustan Ambassador was an automobile manufactured by Hindustan Motors of India. HM was the largest car maker in India before Maruti Udyog. Hindustan Motors Limited (HM), belongs to India's herculean group of industries "The Birla group and was considered as the country’s trailblazer and front runner in car manufacturing during that time, which later became a flagship company of the C.K. Birla Group.The company was established by B.M. Birla in 1942 during the pre-independence period with their small assembly plant in Port Okha near Gujarat by assembling the then Morris 10 as the Hindustan 10.In 1948, Hindustan Motors shifted its assembly plant from Port Okha in Gujarat to Uttarpara/Hindmotor plant, near Calcutta (now Kolkata) in West Bengal's Hooghly district and strengthened its manufacturing capacity in the automobile segment.A lot happened in the mid-1950s, firstly HM upgraded and launched "The 1954 Morris Oxford series II" as '1957 Hindustan Landmaster' which was licence-built at Uttarpara, (Hooghly district), West Bengal, three years after its debut in England thus giving birth to the 'Ambassador' brand in India.Secondly, HM had acquired rights for the new Morris Oxford Series III and Interestingly, the original 'Ambassador' brand was based on the Morris Oxford series III model, first made by Morris Motors Limited at Cowley, Oxford in the United Kingdom from 1956 to 1959. With a 1,489-cc engine, this was the first car in India to have a diesel engine.It quickly became a national icon and continued to dominate Indian roads till the 1980s.
Ambassadors enjoyed market supremacy for decades till the mid-1990s. Its appeal began to wane gradually with the growing popularity of the easily manageable, small-family Maruti Suzuki cars, which boasted of modern design and right pricing. Women’s mobility increased with the Maruti cars, which could be bought with easily available monthly installments. It was also the time the Indian market was opening itself up to foreign cars. But the kaali-peeli Ambassador is now facing stiff competition from new-age taxi service companies, such as Uber and Ola. Preferences of independent taxi owners are also changing fast. From 24,000 units a year in the mid-1980s, sales slumped to less than 2,500 units in 2013-14.The sale of Ambassador taxis was outlawed on 1 April 2011, after BS IV emission standards were rolled out by the Government in 11 Indian cities, including Kolkata.
In later years, Hindustan Motors fitted the cars with a cleaner diesel engine in order to comply with new emission rules, allowing it to resume taxi service in Kolkata, one of the cities in which the vehicle had been banned.On May 24, 2014, the 1942, Uttarpara factory of Hindustan Motors which is the second oldest plant in Asia after Japanese giant Toyota closed its doors permanently and in the same year the Indian government decided to clear the way for buying other brands for its officers.On 11 Feb 2017 HM was finally sold out to France's Peugeot SA for a whopping amount of Rs 80 crores, which includes the brand of Ambassador and its trademark.
Looking at some of its Models: Mark I (1957 to 1962)Mark I (First generation), Mark II (1962 to 1975Mark II (Second generation), Mark III (1975 to 1979)Mark III (Third generation), Mark 4 (1979 to 1990)Mark 4 (Fourth generation) (It was the first diesel car in India), Ambassador Nova Nova (Fifth generation), Ambassador 1800 ISZ, Classic, Classic (Sixth generation), Final GenerationAmbassador Grand & Ambassador Avigo.
If we talk about Tinsukia City and Duliajan town, Tinsukia is an industrial town and the administrative headquarters of Tinsukia District. It was declared as the 23rd district of Assam on 1 October 1989 after it was curved out from the district of Dibrugarh. Like other regions in India, Assam too had numerous kingdoms, which made Tinsukia ruled by three major kingdoms, the Chutiyas, Ahoms and Motok. The ancient name of Tinsukia city was Bengmara originally known as Changmai Pathar during the Chutiya kingdom. It was later made the capital of the Motok Kingdom when a member of the former Chutia royal family named Swargadeo Sarbananada Singha (founder of Motok kingdom) established his capital at Rangagarh situated in the bank of river Guijan.
Duliajan is an industrial town located in Dibrugarh District in the upper north-east corner of India. The town is about 45 km east of Dibrugarh City. It is particularly known for its oil related industry, Oil India Limited, one of the country's largest oil and gas companies. There was also other central government owned companies like B.C.P.L company of gas cracker & polymer, N.E.E.P.C.O., B.F.C.L. and the Shivani company which is India's largest private company for drilling.[2] Assam Gas Company Limited, which carries out business related to natural gas in India owned by the Government of Assam, is also located in this township.
Duliajan derived its name from "Dulia" meaning "palanquin-bearers" of the Ahom kings and "Jan" meaning "a river stream". The Ahom kings, also known as Swargadeos, were very fond of hunting in the Upper Dihing forests. The Swargadeos would come by boat from their capital of Gargaon and Rangpur (in Sivasagar district) down the Dikhow river to the mighty Brahmaputra, then row upstream, enter the Dihing river and halt at the mouth of the stream near Tipling-Ghat in present-day Duliajan. The stream was a guiding pathway for the palanquin bearers of the Swargadeos. Thus, when a new oil town was constructed in this area, to honour the palanquin bearers, it became a natural choice for the historical name of Duliajan.
There is no official record about the exact date of declaration of the oil town as Duliajan. But it started initially with a nucleus of experienced personnel drawn from the Assam Oil Company (AOC) as well as Burmah Oil Company (BOC), the pioneer organizations of Digboi Oilfield. Oil India formally set up its own organization on 1 January 1962 to look after all aspects of drilling and exploration operations, with its headquarters at Duliajan, then known as Zaloni in the Nahorkatiya area.
The establishment of Duliajan oil town may be said to have brought about an era of petroleum industries in the district of Lakhimpur which then comprised the present districts of Dibrugarh and Tinsukia on the south bank and Lakhimpur and Dhemaji on the north bank of the river Brahmaputra. Since its establishment, this fast-growing town has been playing a vital role in the state’s as well as country’s economy.
Tinsukia as Ambassador city:
Way Back since Renaissance: The Ambassador fare taxi service between the commercial city of Tinsukia &Duliajan oil town started long 40-50 years back, when the commuters residing in the oil India Township started traveling towards the commercial for their daily household needs. There may be a question looming in your mind, why and how the Ambassador became a sole dominant game changer on the Indian roads. Now if we look into the period of 1970 to early 2000, the most prominent vehicle on the Indian roads was the Hindustan Ambassador. From Prime Minister, Sarkari Babus to daily commuters this four-wheeler was a symbol of pride and smile for every commuter. Even today the Kalli-Pelli (black & yellow) taxis, gazing on the populated metro roads of Kolkata, Mumbai & Chennai gives every Indian a feeling of nostalgia. Therefore, like other cities Ambassador taxi service began to operate here within a respective district zone named 'Dibrugarh'. This taxi service started way back when the commercial city of Tinsukia was a part of Dibrugarh district till it got curved out as a district on 1st October 1989. Although there were other modes of transportation such as Minibus, 407 Bus, Diesel autos but due to patchy and poor road conditions, Ambassador seems to be the most preferable car by the daily commuters. Moreover, the Sarkari babus (Government employees) of Oil India used Ambassadors as their key vehicles for visiting any oil exploration sites, also it was a matter of pride for them also includes every Indian to have the best Indian car in their parking lot.
Present day: Also, the ultimate point of discussion, is this city still having Ambassador as a part of its transportation? Then the answer is yes. There is a Ambassador taxi stand on the 315A Tinsukia-Dulijan road or the Nau-Pukhuri road just after crossing the railway gate from the Assam Trunk Road (NH 15) near the Tinsukia treasury office. This taxi stand came into light four to five decades back, where many Ambassador cars are even older than 40 years, some were shining with outer maintenance while some are under ventilation. The owners are facing massive difficulties in maintenance due to the unavailability of spare parts after the cessation of its lone & exclusive business unit 'Hindustan Motors' at Hooghly district of West Bengal. Also, these cars cause huge harm to the environment due to their dilapidated engine, which should have been scrapped long back but as we know, for every good thing we want to save, there is a price we need to pay.
Let's conclude by knowing the overwhelming love affair of the Ambassador with the state and bureaucracy: A sturdy normal white four-wheeler becomes formal and more powerful once a beacon is fixed atop its roof. Lal Bahadur Shastri, the then External affairs minister, when asked Nehru about choosing an overseas made car, Nehru responded that he did this “to let them know that the Indian Prime Minister could also be driven in a Cadillac. Similarly, when Shastri took over India’s premiership in 1964, he stuck with the Ambassador—even when foreign dignitaries came visiting. And when asked, why he didn’t follow Nehru’s practice, he replied, “Pandit Nehru was a great man, and it is difficult to emulate him. It makes no difference to me what the foreign dignitaries think as long as they know that the Indian Prime Minister is travelling in a car which is made in India.” After that in 2003 Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee opted for a BMW instead of the Amby which came as a shock to many Indians. It was a narrative shift in India’s power optics. Until then, the Ambassador was the natural choice for prime ministers, politicians, ministers and even civil servants.
What is it that makes the good old ‘Ambassador,’ the only car in India that served dignitaries as well as the common man, a quintessential part of the Indian identity? The above is the answer to this question.
The author is an Educator, Writer and Accountant working with Assam Financial Corporation, Government of Assam.
