The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Expansion of Trade Centre planned

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Feb 01, 2006

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Expansion of Trade Centre planned

Staff Reporter

It is estimated to cost Rs. 12 crore, says Dayanidhi Maran

DOING THE ROUNDS: Union Minister of Communications and Information Technology Dayanidhi Maran at a stall at the India International Leather Fair, which he inaugurated in Chennai on Tuesday. — Photo: R. Shivaji Rao

CHENNAI: A six thousand square metre expansion of Chennai Trade Centre, one of the premier venues in the country for hosting national and international exhibitions, is on the anvil at an estimated cost of Rs.12 crore.

Union Minister of Communications and Information Technology Dayanidhi Maran announced this while inaugurating the India International Trade Fair (IILF-2006) at CTC on Tuesday.

He said this in response to a plea by M. Rafeeque Ahmed, chairman, Council for Leather Export (CLE), who said another 6,000 square metre area should be added to avoid setting up of hangars to accommodate the rush of participants as in this year's IILF. The India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO), which is the majority partner in the CTC, had promised to take up the expansion, Mr. Maran said.

Describing the CTC as a vision of Murasoli Maran, his father and former Union Commerce Minister, he urged the leather industry to appropriately orient its marketing strategies both at macro and micro levels to meet the emerging challenges. "Marketing credibility will have to be established as a long term measure," Mr. Maran said, cautioning the industry against developing complacency in the backdrop of the "sheltered home market."

The leather industry should take a close look at the emerging competition from Southeast Asian countries and take immediate measures to augment the exports. "Our share in global leather trade is only 2.51 per cent. We still have a long way to go," he said. Assuring the industry of all support from the government to facilitate further growth and diversification of the production, Mr. Maran said the Common Minimum Programme of the UPA Government had recognised leather as one of the thrust areas of growth.

The ITPO chairman and managing director, N.N. Khanna, said the IILF had witnessed significant growth in recent years. This year's event, showcasing the products and services of 315 companies from 22 countries, had sizeable representation from Brazil, Italy and the SAARC countries. Apart from being a "shop window to the entire spectrum of the leather industry," the fair offered tremendous opportunities for forming joint ventures, entering into technical collaborations and corporate image building.

Mr. Ahmed said IILF-2006, the 21st in the annual series, was the biggest so far. Detailing the growth of the leather industry, he said it was poised to achieve $ 5.1 billion export target before 2010.

The CLE Chairman appealed to the Centre to create a Rs.100 crore fund to assist units setting up reverse osmosis system to achieve the target of zero liquid discharge by 2007. The modernisation scheme for the industry should be made applicable from the beginning of the Tenth Plan, instead of from November last. The leather export awards were presented at the function.

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