Sir — This refers to the report that Hindustan Motors limited has stopped the production of one-time nation’s pride, the Ambassador car. The vehicle had its root in India ever since the year 1948, just after independence, with an earlier model named as landmaster, till the year 1957, when its unit was shifted from Gujarat to West Bengal. White Ambassador cars were a symbol of dignity when these were the only official cars to be used by our VVIPs.
It is significant that the influence of its manufacturers in the corridors of governance never allowed its only competitor Fiat, by Premier Automobiles limited, to be on the purchase-list of Government departments. Even Tatas could not get a licence to manufacture cars in India. The sector was monopolised by Ambassador and Fiat till the monopoly was broken in 1983.