BackDwarka may be future Auto Expo shows’ venue: Nath
Dwarka may be future Auto Expo shows’ venue: Nath
PremiumMilling around: Crowds at the Auto Expo. Photo: Mint
New Delhi: Union minister Kamal Nath on Wednesday said attempts were on to create a new exhibition centre for international shows in South West Delhi’s Dwarka as the hosting capacity of Pragati Maidan has reached its saturation point.
“We are looking at venues in Dwarka and we are talking to international exhibitors who got skills for an exhibition centre of international standards," Nath told reporters after his valedictory address at the Auto Expo.
“It is true because we have limited exhibition centers and many exhibitors also come there and the number of common people who visit is also increasing each year," he added.
Nath admitted that Pragati Maidan, the present venue, was already stretched to accommodate the show.
However, the urban development minister did not made it clear that whether a new venue would be ready by the time the show is held next year.
“By next year there may be announcement for the creation of a new exhibition centre, but it may take more time to build it," he said.
Nath said relocating the auto show to another venue did not mean that it would move away from the heart of the city. “Today there is no area which can claim to be centre of Delhi. Those who say that they live in Dwarka or East Delhi also can claim that they live in the heart of Delhi," Nath said.
That a venue shift was on the cards was also hinted when Nath unveiled a plaque which mentioned February 5 to 12 as the dates for the next Auto Expo. In place of venue, only the “National Capital Region of Delhi" was mentioned.
Earlier in his valedictory address Nath said that the auto sector reflected the vitality and aspiration of India’s young demographic profile.
“I was delighted to see the vitality of this sector and the vitality of the visitors, a very young age profile. It has been the most significant thing that from 2006 to today, the age profile of the visitors has come down," Nath said.
“It is true that this sector is an index of the economic health of the nation and if we look at the performance of the last five years nobody will say that we have problems with our economy," he said.
In his speech, Nath also mentioned the challenges on urban mobility front that the country is facing due to rapid urbanisation. “ Urban mobility will be a huge challenge; how to move people and not cars...," he said.
Referring to the Delhi example, Nath said “We are seeing in the Capital areas built in the last twenty years which cater to scooters and motorcycles.
“What do we do with parking? What do we do with urban aspects? I have directed that all cities with a population of more than 2 million should start preparing DPR for Metro," Nath said.
Nath said the revised Master Plan of Delhi would be a realistic plan which would factor in the latest technologies and also serve as a model for other cities.
“A realistic plan, a master plan which will take in to account the latest of technologies. We are now working towards planned suburbanisation," he said.
Referring to developing suburbs, the Minister said that in the past suburbs were developed more by default than by desire.
“This time we want it to happen in a planned manner. So that when we talk about India being a global player in the world, its cities are also comparable to cities in the world," he said.
The Delhi Auto Expo can grow twice the rate in size and participants if it gets space and proper infrastructure, he added.
The latest edition of the exhibition was spread across 1.15 lakh square metres of space, compared to 1.25 lakh square metres in 2010. Over 100 firms from across the globe were denied permission to participate in the event due to space limitations.
Talking about the contributions of the auto industry, Kamal Nath said, “This sector is an index of economic health of the country. If we see the last seven days, who will say that there is a problem (in the Indian economy)?"
The huge number of launches by global players is a testimony to the economy’s strength in difficult times, he added.
“India is adopting and adapting the challenges which globalisation has brought in," he said.
The 11th Auto Expo saw Netherlands-based commercial vehicles-maker Paccar, United Kingdom (UK) motorcycle brand Triumph and United States (US) off-road vehicle and bike-maker Polaris Industries showcasing their products here for the first time.
“This time, we witnessed about 7,00,000 people visiting the Auto Expo, that included the exhibitors. We had to cut the number of people due to security and infrastructure issues," Auto Expo 2012 steering committee chairman Rajive Kaul told reporters here.
The organisers had decided to restrict the number of people present inside the venue to one lakh daily, including 30,000 people from the exhibitors’ side.
With over two million visitors at the 2010 Auto Expo, the organisers had claimed that India’s auto show was the second-largest after the Shanghai auto show.
Kaul said the organising committee is exploring alternative locations to hold the next expo, which will offer better infrastructure to the exhibitors as well as public.
On holding the show for the first time in February, Kaul said, “We want to organise it in sync with global shows like Detroit. So we are fixing the dates according to the international calendar."
As many as 1,500 exhibitors and 50 global brands from 24 countries participated the show, which witnessed 58 new launches, including the much-awaited Mini, and the unveiling of nine concept and 12 green vehicles.
However, it was not a smooth ride all along as many business leaders, including Anand Mahindra, criticised the poor crowd management at the show, saying the week-long event was a “serious business" and not just a “tamasha".
Elaborating on the future venue, ACMA President Arvind Kapur told the news agency, “We are seriously looking at 2-3 options such as Gurgaon, Noida and a location near the international airport. Accordingly, the style of the show will also be different."
He said ITPO, which manages the Pragati Maidan, have plans to renovate some of the exhibition halls and it may lead to further squeezing of space.
“This Auto Expo is the second-largest in the world. We could have been the largest, but we had constraints of space and infrastructure. We, in fact, cut the space this time," Kapur said.
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