G-wiz gong

24 October 2011  

THE designer of the G-wiz has been presented an award for innovation – eight years after the EV was first made.

The Innovation Awards 2011, organised by The Economist magazine, has in previous years decorated well-known innovators such as bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales.  However, the award presented to Chetan Maini will come as a surprise to some.

Speaking of his award, Maini said: “This is definitely the most meaningful award that I have received to date. It has always been my dream to use technology to provide alternative green transportation that is affordable and makes a significant beneficial impact on society. It is also a great boost to the team at Mahindra Reva, who have worked tirelessly to make this happen.”

The G-wiz is taxed as a quadricycle in the UK as it doesn’t meet modern construction and use requirements. Most often seen on the streets of London where it avoids the congestion charge, the G-wiz has been criticized by detractors for being slow, impractical, unsafe and for being very ugly. However, judges at the Innovation Awards looked at how the electric car has been popular in Indian cities, providing a clean and efficient means of urban transport.