Even as an impending cyclonic storm threatened to play spoilt sport, the members of Eastern India Motoring Group (EIMG) – an active body of historic car enthusiasts – gathered in front of the Town Hall on Friday, October 21, to participate in the EIMG Drive To East Himalaya Rally Flag Off 2022.

This historic vehicle run - which also marked the beginning of the vintage and classic car season for EIMG members - was flagged off from the iconic Town Hall in Kolkata and culminated at The Westin in Rajarhat. This non-competitive event witnessed participation spanning several decades of automotive history.

Around 30 historic four and two wheelers were in attendance on this autumnal morning among which were Shrivardhan Kanoria’s 1923 Rolls-Royce Sports & 1931 Chevrolet Big 6, Rajiv Ghosh’s 1932 Ford V8 & 1949 Buick 8, Avik Naha’s 1948 Buick 8, Sourav Sett’s 1949 MG Y, Saikat Dutta’s 1963 Triumph Spitfire, Subhajit Kumar’s 1964 Herald & 1969 Fiat 1100d, Debaprem Chatterjee’s 1975 Ambassador, Onurag Chatterji’s 1989 Yezdi and Sarojesh Mukerjee’s 1994 Mazda Miata, just to name a few.

The convoy of heritage vehicles began the run from Town Hall and drove past the Raj Bhavan before being diverted onto Mayo Road and then finally merging with Red Road. The cars continued straight before turning left onto Hospital Road and then embarking on the AJC Bose Road flyover.

The vehicles later traversed the entire stretch of the Maa flyover before alighting just ahead of the Hotel JW Marriot. The convoy proceeded straight to embark onto the Chingrihata flyover and then onward towards Nicco Park.

The historic vehicles then drove past Wipro, Technopolis and Fairfield by Marriot before making the left turn from Biswa Bangla Gate. A short drive from this point saw the convoy arriving at The Westin in Rajarhat, where a bevy of classics along with the participants of the East Himalaya Rally awaited to welcome us.

The slight nip in the air offered the EIMG members the perfect excuse to bask under the autumnal sun as they walked around inspecting the heritage wheels on display, each of which has a considerable amount of history, several miles on the odometer and interesting tales. The EIMG members also mingled with the East Himalaya Rally participants, many of whom very graciously shared several anecdotes about their travels and classics.

Shri Babul Supriyo, Minister of Tourism, Government of West Bengal graced the occasion as the Chief Guest and together with EIMG President Shrivardhan Kanoria flagged-off the East Himalaya Rally participants for a motoring adventure which would taken them across three countries – India, Bhutan and Nepal covering a total distance of 3,244 kilometres. The East Himalaya Rally is scheduled to end in Kolkata on Saturday, November 12.

Post the flag-off ceremony, EIMG member Mr. Sumit Periwal hosted a lavish breakfast meet for the EIMG officials and members that provided everyone with a platform to share a great camaraderie over tales and laughter.