A mini armoured car, designed for use in confined spaces like airports, hotels or stadiums and inspired by the trauma of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, drew admirers at an Indian arms fair Wednesday. The battery-operated Anti-Terrorist Assault Cart (ATAC), which resembles a bullet-proof golf buggy with attitude, is built to carry two fully-armed security personnel along narrow corridors.
Its manufacturer, Metaltech Motor Bodies Pvt Ltd, said it had been designed in the wake of the Mumbai carnage, in which gunmen holed up in two luxury hotels held Indian commandos at bay for 60 hours. Seventeen security personnel lost their lives in the attacks, which left a total of 166 people dead. Dotted with four firing ports, the squat, heavily armoured vehicle with bullet-proof windows can withstand grenade blasts and last for six hours on a single charge with a top speed of 25 kilometres (15 miles) an hour.
The company said it was offering the prototype for trials with the sponsors of the Commonwealth Games to be held in November in New Delhi and to India's elite National Security Guards.