Auto expo in Coimbatore

By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI, JULY 1. Auto Focus 2000, a comprehensive exposition on the automobile industry, is being organised at Coimbatore from August 3 to 6, by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in association with the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) and the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA).

Conceived as a regional trade fair on the industry, with a focus on the consumer as also the replacement market, Auto Focus 2000 will feature automobiles, accessories, components and ancillaries and automotive products and services. Besides, there will be participants from the vehicle finance and information/media sectors.

Addressing a press conference here on Friday, Mr. Venu Srinivasan, Patron, Auto Focus 2000, said the CII, organiser of the biennial Auto Expo in New Delhi, Asia's biggest automotive show, was hopeful that the Auto Focus series would give the industry access to regional markets (consumers and trade) and also expose consumers to the latest automobile models, accessories and related products and services.

Mr. L. Ganesh, Chairman, Auto Focus 2000, said the exhibition to be held at the new Cointech Trade Fair Complex, built by CODISSIA (Coimbatore District Small-Scale Industries Association) with a display space of 11,000 square metres, was convenient for buyers and visitors from three of the four southern States. Also, Coimbatore itself was a major centre of engineering and auto components industries.

He said the ACMA would hold a special programme, `Asli-Naqli, to create awareness among consumers about the hazards posed by the trade in counterfeit spares, which had grown in the absence of the required legal regime to deal with it. (Counterfeiting of products is not a cognisable offence and part of criminal law in India, and action is taken only on the basis of complaints). Manufacture of parts in the unorganised sector without duty burdens and imposition of MRP-based excise on genuine manufacturers had also contributed to growth of spurious brands.

Replying to questions, Mr. Srinivasan said the SIAM had taken the stand that second-hand car imports should not be allowed unless the imports fulfilled the same safety and pollution norms as were imposed on manufacturers in the country and a floor price was fixed on such cars, as in the case of several second-hand capital goods, to prevent dumping.

He said that contrary to the general impression, there was no sluggishness in demand for automobiles in the country, including cars, but only a ``segmental shift'' in demand within the sector.

Accessories that could feature in the exhibition would include vehicle care products, audio systems, tyres and tubes, security systems and alloy wheels.

Fuels and lubricants and garage and service equipment would also be part of the theme.

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Section  : Business
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