Maruti WagonR, being modified into a helicopter in UP, seized by police

Two brothers from Ambedkar Nagar in Uttar Pradesh were working on modifying a Maruti WagonR into a helicopter. But their ambitious project ended abruptly when UP Police came knocking on the door. The cops seized the car as well as slap a challan of ₹2,000 on the two brothers. However, the video of the modified WagonR with welded tail and rotor of a helicopter has gone viral across social media platforms.

The video shows a white WagonR with rotor and tail made out of scrap metal. Ishwar Deen and his brother had planned to use the modified Maruti WagonR helicopter during wedding seasons to ferry brides and grooms. They used indigenous ideas, popularly called ‘jugaad’ in India, to modify the car. The duo were on their way to Akbarpur to get the vehicle painted when it caught the attention of local police officials. It was taken away by the cops but later released when the duo paid a fine of ₹2,000.

The brothers had invested around ₹2.50 lakh to modify the Maruti WagonR by adding rotor and tail of a helicopter. The welded the tail rotor of a chopper into the boot of the car as well as mounted rotor on top of roof to give it an appearance of a chopper. "I had transformed the car to use it for booking during the wedding seasons so that our family will be able to earn some extra money," Ishwar said. Though he managed to release the car from police, he had to sacrifice the efforts taken so far to modify it. "The police issued a challan of ₹2,000 and asked to remove the back portion of the car," he added.

According to police, the vehicle was seized as it did not meet safety standards for Indian roads as directed in Motor Vehicles Act. The cops said the brothers did not have proper authorisation to modify the WagonR. Ishwar Deen's plea that his vehicles be allowed as similar modified cars have also been seen operating in neighbouring state Bihar. But the police did not pay heed to his requests. Vishal Pandey, Assistant Superintendent of Police, said, "Modifications require permission from the RTO department, and the vehicle was seized under Section 207 of the Motor Vehicles Act. We are investigating further."

Car modification in India is not allowed without authorisation from local RTO. Modifications done on vehicle without informing local authorities can lead to a hefty penalty as they are seen as illegal act according to Motor Vehicles Act. Modifying vehicles beyond what carmakers offer straight out of a showroom is illegal as they are seen as potential threat to road safety. The law bars such changes to the original design, structure or performance of a vehicle.