This time in the 25th annual program of vintage and classic cars, along with Rajmata Gayatri Devi’s Mercedes, the first air-conditioned car of 1940 of Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje family was also displayed.
The 25th annual event of vintage and classic cars was organised at Jai Mahal Palace, Jaipur on 24th and 25th February. As part of this annual event of Vintage and Classic Car Exhibition and Drive, the journey of 120 cars over the years was displayed through a special collage.
The exhibition included around 120 cars from Jaipur, Delhi, Gurgaon, Chandigarh, Mumbai and parts of Rajasthan. The exhibition was free of cost to the public on February 24 from 10 am to 6 pm. Organised by Rajputana Automotive Sports Car Club, Jaipur, this event is one of the most successful and oldest vintage and classic car events in India. The main objective of this event is to promote tourism in Rajasthan.
An event like this in Rajasthan, considered one of the heritage-rich places in the world, speaks volumes about India’s rich automobile heritage. It also provides employment opportunities to those old mechanics whose skills have diminished due to changing technology and automation.
Rajputana Automotive Sports Car Club Founder President Dayanidhi Kasliwal said that, ‘we are grateful to the government for carrying forward this tradition of organising events of the best vintage and classic cars.’ Deputy Director of Tourism Department, Upendra Singh, said that through this event, tourism in Rajasthan will be promoted and India’s rich automobile heritage, vintage and classic cars will be conserved.
The show was inaugurated by Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma and Police Commissioner Biju George Joseph at Taj Jai Mahal Palace on February 24 at 12 noon. This show was open for car lovers from 10:30 am to 6 pm. SB Jatti from Delhi and Shrivardhan Kanoria from Kolkata were the judges of the different cars. To decide on awards, cars were divided into 3 sections – Vintage, Classic and Modern Classic on the basis of originality, maintenance, rarity, provenance etc.
Some unique cars participating in the event
1913 Ford Model T (Owner: Meet Badhalia), 1923 Austin Chummy (Owner: Ghani Autos), 1931 Cadillac V16 (Owner: Ranjit Malik from Delhi), 1936 AC 16/17 Rumble (Owner: Madan Mohan from Delhi), 1934 Rolls Royce Royce (Owner: Ashish Jain from Delhi), 1958 Cadillac (Owner: Diljit Titus from Delhi), 1958 Chevrolet Impala (Owner: Harshpati Singhania), 1952 Packard Cavalier (Gautam Singhania), Imperial (Vivek Goenka)
On March 25, at 11.30 am, Health Minister Gajendra Singh Khinvsar and Ashok Rathod, Area Director, Taj Group of Hotels, Jaipur, flagged the vintage car drive from Taj Jai Mahal Palace. These cars travelled on the roads of Jaipur via Government Hostel, MI Road, Panch Batti, Statue Circle, Ambedkar Circle, Chaumun Circle and returned to Taj Jai Mahal Palace. There was an award distribution ceremony at 3 pm, in which Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Diya Kumari was invited.
After this event of vintage cars, the Jaipur Open Polo final match was held at Rajasthan Polo Ground. Here vintage and classic cars were parked in the designated parking at the Polo Ground itself.