The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), organizers of the Auto Expo has announced a change of venue for the country's premium and most eagerly awaited automobile expo. SIAM has announced that the 2014 Auto Expo will be organized at Greater Noida from February 6-12 instead of the regular venue Pragati Maidan.
According to SIAM the expo dates have been rescheduled from January to February in order to avoid clashing with the Detroit Auto Show. Since the usual venue was not available in February for the required dates, SIAM had no option but to choose a new venue. Pragati Maidan has always been home of the Auto Expo since its inception with the expo always kicking off in the first week of the new year.
Speaking to the press after the announcement, Vishnu Mathur, director general, SIAM said, "In the next Auto Expo, which will be held from 6-12 February, we will be showing only vehicles and accessories at the India Expo Centre and Mart in Greater Noida. Lot of global CEOs who wanted to be here have said to us that they could not because of their engagement with the Detroit Auto Show. So we decided to shift our Auto Expo to February."
The shift in venue is likely to be seen as a welcome breather by the well wishers of the Indian automobile industry. A lot of industry insiders have spoken out in the past about the lack of adequate facilities at Pragati Maidan which did not match up to the standards of global automobile shows. There have also been reports of mismanagement and lack of adequate crowd control measures owing to infrastructure related issues which resulted in visitor entry being restricted during the 2012 Auto Expo.
Here's hoping the new location brings an end to the venue related problems that attracted a lot of flak for the 2012 Auto Expo from auto enthusiasts and head honchos of the automobile industry.
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