India to be a Partner country in Hannover Fair

New Delhi, Feb 22 (UNI) The Centre will give Rs 15 crore as financial assistance to Engineering Export Promotion Council (EEPC) for organising India's participation as the partner country in the Hannover Fair in Germany during April 24-28.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today gave its approval for relaxing the ceiling of Rs 50 lakh for such assistance from the Market Access Initiative (MAI) scheme, subject to other conditions of the scheme being fulfilled.

Finance Minister P Chidambaram told mediapersons after the meeting that India's participation at the Hannover Fair, an annual event widely acknowledged as the most important in the world to showcase different aspects of industrial technology, would consolidate the country's close economic and political ties with Germany, the powerhouse of the European Union (EU).

"India will gain recognition of its technology players in myriad industrial segments," he said.

The main display categories at the fair include process automation, factory automation, industrial facility management and services, energy, pipeline technology, digital factory, micro technology, research and technology, sub-contracting and industrial building automation.

The Hannover Fair enjoys a commanding role globally for expanding business in industrial engineering and has emerged as the event to present ground-breaking innovations.

India was invited as a partner country at Hannover Messe in 1984 and now after a gap of 21 years, it was again invited to be the partner country for Hannover Fair this year.

UNI SH YA DB1159