The vision of Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata is the reason why India has one of the biggest populations of trucks on the planet
India gained its freedom in 1947 to become a sovereign and democratic nation. And to do so, the country had to engage in a struggle movement that lasted for decades, events that have been well-documented.
Post-independence, India continued to evolve into an economically strong nation with a massive defence force and made significant improvements – all of these developments have also been documented as part of the country’s history.
However, when it comes to automobiles, the country’s history has never been properly documented, despite India being known for its frugal engineering and being one of the largest automobile markets in the world.
In this article of the ‘Indian History’ series, let us look at the truck that started India’s trucking tale.
For the uninitiated, Tata Motors was originally known as Tata Engineering and Locomotive Company (TELCO), a company founded by Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata in 1945, specialising in the production of locomotives. After India gained independence, Tata was quick to realise that logistics is an important part of a country's growth and cannot be done with small vehicles. Therefore, India needed trucks made in India to ensure the cost remained in check, making them accessible to the majority.
Given that India had just gained independence and the production of cars was still in its early stages, Tata decided to collaborate with German truck builder Daimler-Benz to put his plan into action. Daimler-Benz was one of the leading names in the truck manufacturing business, and they had the technology that Tata knew could be tweaked to suit the Indian driving conditions.
On October 23, 1954, TELCO launched the TMB 312 in India. For those wondering what TMB is, it is a joint venture between Tata and Mercedes-Benz. The truck was based on the Mercedes-Benz L 312, which had two axles and a 90 HP OM312 engine with a payload capacity of 4.5 tonnes. Given that the tech belonged to Mercedes, the trucks made by TELCO in India flaunted the Mercedes logo. The joint venture between the two companies lasted for 15 years, ending in 1969.
The TMB 312 was also sold in other iterations, including the TMB 1210, which later evolved into the TATA 1210 D, serving in the Indian defence forces for decades due to its ability to carry 40 per cent more payload than the 312.
In the later years, even after the collaboration between TELCO/Tata and Daimler-Benz ended, the design of the trucks built by Tata was heavily influenced by the design of Daimler-Benz models.
Today, despite steep competition from other manufacturers like Ashok Leyland and Eicher, among others, Tata is the largest truck producer in the country and the fourth-largest truck manufacturer in the world, leaving its footprint in every part of the world. The next time you see a truck on the road, remember Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhoy Tata, his vision, and the legacy trucks hold in India.
