Bajaj Launches 'V' Motorcycle Built With Metal From Warship

Bajaj Auto launched its much talked about 150cc bike "V" - The Invincible which has been built from the scraps of the iconic aircraft carrier Vikrant.

Rajiv Bajaj, managing director of Bajaj Motorcycles, said on Monday (February 1) that the bike will be priced between Rs 60,000 and Rs 70,000 and will hit the road from March.

Bajaj also claimed that the company’s new offering will create a new segment in the market and change the way how commuter bikes are seen in India.

"We launched Pulsar back in 2001 which created a revolution in the sports bike segment. Fifteen years later we are launching V- The Invincible to repeat the same success in the commuter segment," said Bajaj.

The bike is powered by the same 150cc DTSi engine which is installed in its other flagship bikes, Pulsar, Avenger and Discover. The major attraction of the bike is its distinct muscular design and an option to deliver the experience of commuter and powerful bike at a same time.

The bike will be available in two colours, Ebony black and Pearl White. The company will roll out 20,000 units of the V in the initial months for the domestic market.

The company said its decision to build the bike from the scraps of the Vikrant is to make people remember about the forgotten hero that served the country for more than three decades.

"We want to strike a chord with many Indians who were disheartened to have lost the icnonic warship. The pride of owning a piece of INS Vikrant is available to lakhs of Indian in the form of Bajaj V," said Eric Vas, the motorcycle business head.

When asked about the exact proportions of the Vikrant metal in the bike, Rajiv Bajaj on light note said, "Product specifications are confidential for competitive reasons."

The warship was commissioned into the Indian Navy in 1961 and was given the name Vikrant. After decades of distinguished service and playing a pivotal role in the blockade of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) during the Indo-Pak war of 1971, the warship was decommissioned in 1997.

From 1997 to 2012, the Vikrant was docked in Mumbai, serving as a naval museum and was finally scrapped in 2014.