Sangli man makes own vehicle, impresses Anand Mahindra
Kolhapur: Dattatray Lohar feels like a child, who does not want share his toys. This feeling is for a four-wheeler
he made using spare parts and which has now attracted the attention of
Anand Mahindra the chairman of the Mahindra group. A resident of Devrashtre village in Sangl district, around 200 km south of Pune, Lohar makes a living through his welding shop
He has a passion to make products out of spare parts ,He has now made a small four-wheeler using parts usually discarded — such as the engine of a two-wheeler, tyres of an autorickshaw and the iconic front panel of a Mahindra jeep. A video of his home-made vehicle caught the attention of Anand Mahindra.
Mahindra, in his tweet, wrote, “Local authorities will sooner or later stop him from plying the vehicle since it flouts regulations. I’ll personally offer him a Bolero in exchange. His creation can be displayed at Mahindra ResearchValley to inspire us, since ‘resourcefulness’ means doing more with less resources,The 45-year-old, however, doesn’t want to part with his creation. He has promised to make a similar model for the business leader. Lohar has got a call from the Sangli branch of Mahindra and Mahindra to see his vehicle on Thursday.
“Somebody told me that Anand Mahindra is ready to give me a Bolero in exchange of the vehicle I made. I will make a similar vehicle for him, but will not give this one. It is a toy for me, made by me. Does any child give away his toy to anyone?”he told
Lohar was born in the family of ironsmiths in the perennially-drought prone Devrashtre village. He said that he joined the family work very early and hardly went to school. The humble background and lack of formal education never held him back from trying new things. “A few years ago, he tried his hands at making a wind mill to produce electricity for his house. For the past two years, he was gathering, assembling parts to make a four-wheeler for himself. After several corrections and improvisations, he was able to make a vehicle which works,” said Atul Jadhav, a resident of Devrashtre who has known Lohar for several years for now.
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