The sky was bright and clear. Winter had already tiptoed into Kolkata bringing the mercury down significantly. As members of Eastern India Motoring Group (EIMG) made their way with their heritage vehicles to the Calcutta Rowing Club that Sunday morning, little did they know that this day was going to turn into a very special experience wrapped with compassion and love.
Let’s quickly rewind to 1986. What began as a small effort in the Baranagar-Belgharia area turned into a life-changing mission that would go on to positively impact the lives of thousands of under-privileged children. While an expressway was under construction, children living on the streets risked their lives collecting coal remnants instead of going to school. Moved by their plight, Mr. Kallol Ghosh began teaching them with his own pocket money.
Realizing the deeper dangers these children faced—exploitation, trafficking—he founded OFFER (Organisation For Friends Energies and Resources). Despite early doubts and various obstacles, his vision endured. Today, OFFER supports nearly 50,000 children – differently abled and living with HIV, offering them safety, education, and hope for a better future. Outstanding initiative to say the least!
Fast forward to Sunday, November 30, 2025: For the very first time, EIMG joined hands with OFFER to organize a unique heritage convoy drive from Calcutta Rowing Club (CRC) to Anandaghar in Gobindapur called ‘EIMG Legacy on Wheels’ with the objective to raise social awareness about children living with HIV and also mark the inauguration of a new unit at Anandaghar which provides care and protection to orphan and young adults living with HIV and strives for successful integration of youth in the mainstream society.
Around 40 heritage cars and bikes took part in this unique convoy drive which included S.K.Lahiri’s 1948 Plymouth Special Deluxe, Shrivardhan Kanoria’s 1936 Bentley 3.5, 1948 Buick Super 8 owned by Avik Naha, Shubhajit Kumar’s 1963 Standard Herald, Sumit Periwal’s 1953 Land Rover Series 1, 1951 Austin A40 owned by Debaprem Chatterjee, 1990 Mercedes Benz W124 owned by Mubaraq Maseeh, Krish Ajmera’s 1934 Rolls-Royce 20/25, Chandan Basu Mallik’s 1949 Norton Dominator, Sarojesh Mukerjee’s 1958 Standard Vanguard, 1940 Triumph owned by Terence Lobo, 1963 Triumph Spitfire owned by Saikat Dutta, Kunal Banerjee’s 1926 Studebaker Erskine, 1989 Yezdi Jawa owned Onurag Chatterji and Ranajit Gooptu’s 1952 Austin Somerset just to name a few.
What really stood out is that many of the children who are being currently supported by OFFER not only got an opportunity to see these heritage beauties from up close, but some of them also got a joy ride in these vintage and classic vehicles from CRC to Anadaghar. A very special memory to cherish for both EIMG members and the children. Later, the EIMG members enjoyed a delicious lunch served by Café Positive, an initiative supported by OFFER which employs young adults living with HIV.
Photographs courtesy: Mohammed Adnan Aslam
Power Drive 