Calcutta, March 18 :    Calcutta, March 18:  Sheikh Alamgir pauses in front of the entrance to the ornate conference hall of Great Eastern Hotel, mopping the sweat off his brow with the tail of his grubby dhoti. Alamgir, a cobbler in the street, has walked from his hole-in-the-wall shoe-repair facility on Phears Lane to take part in a meet at which he is a special invitee. He has been told that he can pick up tips here which can do wonders for his'dhanda'. Summoning up enough courage to enter the hall filled with traders and executives from the leather trade, all in swank suits, an awestruck Alamgir is introduced to the use of synthetic threads and plastic lasts which 'can improve the quality of service' he provides his customers. 'Hamare jaisa to yahan koi nahin hai... par yahan aake bahut naya cheez dekhne ko mila hai (There is no one like me here... but I've seen so many new things),' smiles the muchi. The two-day buyer-seller interface-cum-exhibition organised by the Indian Footwear Components Manufacturers Association (Ifcoma), with National Leather Development Programme, provides a platform for the small leather manufacturers in and around the city, and even the street cobbler like Alamgir and others who followed, to learn the latest tricks in the trade - from components and accessories to machinery. 'Our aim is to change the mindset of the small shoe-maker and even the wayside mender by organising the right availability of components and raw material. Thus, the cobbler can use durable plastic lasts instead of the traditional wooden ones, increase his productivity and achieve a better price for his final product by using better sewing, lasting and cementing machines,' explains Ifcoma president Mani Almal. 'Earlier, the emphasis was only on skill upgradation and it's true that Bengal still has the finest shoe craftsmen in the country. Through expositions like this, we are trying to support that skill with technological intervention and improved components,' adds S.S. Kumar, chairman, eastern region, Council for Leather Exports. The response to this interface has been positive. Ranjan Rakshit, a 26-year-old trainee at the Ramakrishna Mission Jana Shiksha Mandir, Belur Math's vocational training course in shoe and chappal-making, feels the exposure will help him set up his business. Experts feel that such exhibitions can also go a long way in making the Indian footwear industry 'self-sufficient'.