Meghalaya home minister R.G. Lyngdoh (extreme left) at a news conference in Shillong on Thursday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Shillong, Sept. 11: If Delhi can boast of the country’s biggest trade fair at Pragati Maidan, can Shillong be far behind?

The Shillong Trade Fair, which had its inception in 1999, has crystallised into an international fair this year. Organised by the Industries & Trade Fair Association of Assam (N-E region) with support from the Meghalaya government, the fifth International Trade Fair 2003 will be held at the Fire Brigade Ground in Shillong.

The nine-day mega trade event (commencing on September 15 and continuing till September 24) is being organised in co-ordination with the directorate of information & public relations, Meghalaya, along with the support of directorate of industries, Meghalaya.

According to R.G. Lyngdoh, minister for home, information and public relations and chairman of the organising committee, the trade fair will have participants from both within and outside the country. “We are expecting a contingent from Iran and Bangladesh to showcase a whole range of melamine crockery. They also have plans to go in for collaborative ventures. Besides that, the trade fair will encourage local entrepreneurs to meet and tie up with national and international companies,” said Lyngdoh.

What makes this fair a cut above many trade fairs in the country is the fact that it would be the second biggest trade fair in the Northeast, next only to Guwahati.

As Rajesh Das, vice-president of the Industries and Trade Fair Association of Assam (ITFAA), pointed out, “Iran is the partner country of the international fair which has been recognised and acknowledged by the India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO). While Iran and Bangladesh will be ambassadors of Meghalaya’s trade prospects to countries abroad, they would also be bringing their own products which are among the best in the world.”

Iran’s Goltab Melamine Industries Private Limited, one of the participants, is the leading manufacturer of melamine products in the world followed closely by Bangladesh’s Sharif Melamine, also a participant. A lot of emphasis is being laid on the image that Meghalaya wants to project.

The main objective of organising such a grand trade fair is to encourage local entrepreneurs and small units extend their horizons, what with globalisation being the new buzzword in trade circles.

While the fair will host participants from across the country (especially electronics and television companies), the local SSI units would also find a veritable platform to play up their own ideas and products.

As Das explained, “The organisers are taking pains to ensure some fruitful business understanding and dealings between these SSI units and participants from outside the country. The former will have the advantage of paying rentals of just Rs 15,000 owing to the 75 per cent subsidy being granted by the directorate of industries.”

Since its inception, the trade fair association, too, has been providing subsidised rates for the Meghalaya government participants and local units. One of the major attractions of the fair will be the presentation of the first-ever comprehensive show on computer software with state-of-the-art technology which has been specially imported for the children of the Northeast. A special theatre hall will be constructed for the purpose within the trade fair grounds. The software show, which is expected to have 3-D pyrotechnics, will take as many as 10 children on a 10-minute voyage for an out-of-the-world experience.

The trade fair will also provide a forum for key strategic deals among investors, entrepreneurs, market leaders, government officials and industrial head honchos. On display would be a wide selection of products from industries as diverse as agriculture, automobiles, consumer durables, textile garments, leather goods, jute and handicrafts, stationary, cosmetics and tea.

The fair might also witness the participation of a Pakistani contingent, which is awaiting visa clearance. Should that come through, buyers can also lay their hands on exquisitely carved marble and onyx items. Mawmluh Cherra Cements Ltd and Uphaar Tea are the associate sponsors for the trade event. Like international trade fairs elsewhere, this one, too, promises to facilitate a direct transaction between foreign producers and purchaser of a specific product, in addition to ensuring interactions relating to new production techniques among local and foreign entrepreneurs.

With the stage being set, the fair is expected to become the talk of the town.