Workers push the toy train on a rail track at the trade fair in Jorhat on Monday. Picture by UB Photos
Jorhat, Feb. 16: The railways will cash in on the first Assam International Trade and Industrial Fair (AITIF), which will begin here on Thursday, to project itself as an agent of change in the Northeast.
The railways have laid a 220-metre track at the fair ground and will display a toy train. A mini train will take people on a tour of the fair ground.
Senior deputy general manager, NF Railway,Rajesh Agarwal, said the fair would help create an awareness about the opportunities offered by the railways for better trade and commerce in the region. It would immensely benefit young entrepreneurs, traders, industrialists, investors, agents, tour and courier operators, he said.
There will be a complete railway session at the fair on February 25, the concluding day, and it will be attended by general manager of NF Railway R.S. Virdi. The NF Railway is a partner of the AITIF.
Some of the other star attractions of the fair will be an Afghanistan business session, a friendly invitational golf tournament, bakery and cooking classes, a loan mela, live sketching, 3D pop art exhibition, a daredevil show, a concert by Soulmate band (from Shillong), tatoo art and films.
Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi, commissioner of industries and commerce Swapnanil Baruah and chief secretary J. Khosla will address the inaugural session. There will be an address by partner country Myanmar, focus country Thailand and partner state Meghalaya.
The one-day golf meet organised by theAssam Tourism Development Corporation at Kaziranga Golf Resort will be held on Friday.
That day there will be a Meghalaya business session and an Afghanistan business session too to showcase business and investment opportunities. The third day will have technical sessions on tourism and entrepreneurship development.
Each day will end with a surfeit of cultural programmes by both the host country and other countries like Thailand and Myanmar.
There will be a fashion show, Rhythm of Manipur,and a performance by Thailand cultural troupe. Painter Robin Bor, Prabhat Sarma's folk instrument ensemble, a concert by Jubilee and band, Mukha Nitya by Sivasagar Khatpaar Xatra's Rebokanta Mahanta, Dare Devil Show by Abhinash Kishore and a concert by Reign of Hearts are expected to be crowd-pullers.
