It was a truly beautiful Sunday as the sun shone just bright enough and the bevy of vintage beauties rolled out in bright red, blue, green, yellow and some in magnetic jade black, and with the wind beneath the wheels, at The Statesman Vintage & Classic Car Rally in the heart of the national capital. Commissioner of Delhi Police Amulya Kumar Patnaik was the event chief guest.
The Statesman vintage car rally did it again! The 51st edition of the annual rally in the city attracted a huge participation and onlookers. This time, the participation was much bigger than the last. Over a 100 vintage and classic cars from the bygone era, sleek and as good as new, participated in the rally. The 50th edition last year witnessed the participation of 60 odd cars that dated back to 1939 or older while around 40 cars were from the 1940s.
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Belonging to different eras and owners, some of the oldest and the most exclusive vintage and classic cars from all over the country, left hundreds of car lovers in the city overwhelmed as the cars were driven down the roads at the event.
New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) chairman Naresh Kumar flagged off the rally from the Statesman House, Barakhamba Road, in the heart of Delhi. After whizzing through the city, the rally culminated at the National Stadium. Prizes in different categories, including the best maintained, were distributed to the winners by Amulya Kumar Patnaik, Commissioner of Police, Delhi. The pre-judging of the participating cars was carried out on February 24-25 at Modern School, Barakhamba Road.
One of the most cherished and sought-after events in Delhi, the annual rally has gone from strength to strength over the years. This year's rally also saw the launch of a coffee-table book marking 50 years of the event. The Statesman 50 Classic Years of Vintage Glory was released by Justice Dalveer Bhandari, Judge, International Court of Justice. RP Gupta, Chairman and Ravindra Kumar, Editor and Managing Director of The Statesman were also present at the book release function.
The rally first began in Delhi in the year 1964 as The Statesman Vintage Car Rally. Following its huge success, it was brought to Kolkata in 1968, and was renamed The Statesman Vintage & Classic Car Rally. Since then, the event is being held every year in New Delhi and Kolkata around this time of the year. This year's Kolkata edition was held on 28 January.
