The future is now...

The future isn't coming anymore.. It's here already. Hybrid cars, emission standards, biofuels and the like are growing exponentially. Yet, here, our country lags behind in it's views. Not everyone mind you, just those who have the power to change things.

How hard is it to have a dedicated area of production for jatropha, sugarcane and other vegetable oil. Bio diesel is the one of the best future fuels, or rather, alternative fuels. Forget cars running on water and air, the concept is not new, yes, but it isn't feasible for mass production, yet. That could be a distant memory very soon, or they could be seen within every distance.

In a recent interview with a reputed magazine, the CEO of a reputed Japanese automobile manufacturer stated, "In India, the government does not see any advancements in technology as the main criteria. They only care about the size of the engine (1.5L diesel) even if the technology is 20 years old." From the horses mouth I would say.

It is a well known fact that 1.6L diesels are the rage in Europe - they are super-efficient and extremely clean, not to mention quite powerful. Ford, Hyundai, Volvo and many more manufacturers have fantastic 1.6L diesel engines and quite a few practical small car options, which they cannot bring here because our norms state a small car is "defined" as any automobile under 4000mm in length with an engine capacity of 1.2L petrol and 1.5L diesel. Screw that I say. Might I remind you that those 1.6L diesel in European cars are waaay more efficient and powerful than these piddly 1.2L petrols on offer in India. Put all the variable valve timing and variable intake systems you want, they're still horribly underpowered. Now if they can only strap on a turbo or two. What do the norms say about that? 1.2L petrol - quad turboed to 140bhp - not bad IMHO. Staring at the sun does not mean your seeing the light. Seeing the light actually means looking away from the sun, doofuses all.

PUCs are a joke. You give a guy on a 2002 Bajaj Caliber a 3 month pass cos his emissions are 2.5% over the limit prescribed. As the fool writes the numbers and signs it before he staples it in it's "plastic" protection cover - there have probably been 4 BSII PMT buses having passed by belching soot particles from their poorly processed diesel fuel as it passed through an indirect injection compression ignition internal combustion engine that needed service a decade ago. No, he didn't even look up, as he coughed while he stapled the little yellow paper into a plastic shroud, to notice the relative irony in all of it.

Traffic sense has gone to the dogs, and donkey and cattle. I have seen, with my own eyes, dogs, donkeys, cattle and all sorts of other animals look both ways before they cross the street. People have no traffic sense anymore. I, at times, picture barbed wire fences or Contra/Doom/Quake style spikes shoot up from the ground forming a barricade after the red light has showed face. But no, no one even considers another person. You're not the only person on the face of the earth. How I wish I could run down all those fools goin "trips" on a Splendor, at night, headlights off, the wrong way, on a one way street.. No, cos I'd be in trouble for following the rules as the guy we hit has an uncle who knows the friend of the brother of the cousin of the traffic cop who just stopped me for questioning.

It's come to a state where money doesn't make the world go round anymore. The world is slowing down. And when it does come to a stop, my dear Autocar, no number of Bentley Arnages will be enough to make it spin again.

I'd like to say "the future I feared, is the past I've forgotten", but the present just past reminds me there's more to come...