Cops chashing a Rhino

Delhi Police to replace the new fleet of Chevrolet Tavera police control room (PCR) vans with Sonalika Rhino

Delhi Police to replace the new fleet of Chevrolet Tavera police control room (PCR) vans with Sonalika Rhino

They might challan you for overspeeding but when it comes to their own vehicles, city cops settle for nothing but the best as well as fastest.

Sleek wheels: The new vehicles will be readjusted to suit police needs. The new cars wil be bought after March 2010. Representative pic

After spending crores on buying 130 Chevrolet Tavera cars, the Delhi Police has decided to go shopping again for police control room vans. And this time, the force has zeroed in on the new Rhino, an SUV from the tractor-maker Sonalika. When the police had bought Taveras, it was argued that the then Maruti Gypsies and Qualis were not fast and spacious enough to maintain a vigil. According to senior police officials, the proposal to purchase new cars had been sanctioned and the process would start after March 2010. Sources said that Tavera cars were purchased after extensive research, however, some of the officials compalined that Qualis and Gypsies earlier used by the force were much better in terms of mobility in the field.

"With the Commonweath Games round the corner, we have to acquire new PCR vehicles. Qualis is no longer manufactured in India and officials didn't find Tavera's performance satisfactory. New Rhino PCR vans will initially be deployed in the New Delhi district," sources added.

u00a0"Rhino will be slightly modified to suit the needs of the police. Hi-tech gadgets like the GPS will be installed in the vehicles," he said.

Senior Police officials refused to divulge exact number of the new vehicles that the department will procure next year.u00a0 Commissioner of Police (Administration), Kishan Kumar refused to comment on the matter.

Did you know?
The first police car was a wagon run by electricity fielded on the streets of Akron, Ohio in 1899. It could reach 16 mph (26 km/h) and travel 30 mi (48 km) before its battery needed to be recharged.

Speed thrills

In Holland, police officers use theu00a0 Spyker C8 Spider which has a speed ofu00a0 300km/h (187 mph)u00a0 and goes from 0 to 100 Km/hr in 3.8 seconds. In London one can see police officers driving Lamborghini cars, but a different model: Murcielago LP640. It can reach a 330 km/h and it can go from 0 to 100 Km/hr in 3.4 seconds. The Dodge Charger is used in the U.S.A and it was first presented at the New York auto show in 2005. It is powered by a 425 hp engine which offers 233 Km/hr and it is used across 50 states; it can charge from 0 to 100 Km/hr in six seconds. Porche Carrera with a top speed of 285 Km/hr is used in Austria. This is one of the fastest police cars, it is used in the same country as the MiniSmart, but it looks more sporty and it has a more elegant design.

Luxury Rhino

Priced between Rs 5.85 lakh and 8 lakh, The Rhino is bigger in size with a seating capacity of 8-9 people. It can be driven at a maximum speed of 150 km/hour in the city roads. It was launched last year, days before the Auto Expo in the capital.u00a0