Italy to invest Rs five crore for leather project in Kolkata

Kolkata, Feb 12 (UNI) The Italian Ministry of International Trade and the Italian Trade Commission in India have joined hands with the Indian Council of Leather Exports for setting up a leather product training and service sector at the proposed Kolakata leather complex at Bantala this year.

The National Association of Italian Manufacturer of footwear, leather goods and tanning machinery will colaborate in this Rs five crore project.

The idea for setting up this unique training centre was mooted during the visit of West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee in Italy in 2005, when a comprehensive MOU was signed to this effect between the council of leather exports and National Association of Italian Manufacturer of footwear, leather goods and tanning machinery.

Following the MOU a number of Italian industries representing the leather sector had visited Kolkata quite a number of times to provide technical assistance for the upgradation of the Indian leather industry.

They had also provided technical assistance for finished leather goods design and had shared the funding of the total project with the Union Minister of Commerce and Industry.

Describing the decision to set up the state-of-the-art training centre former CLE Chairman S S Kumar, who is representing the council in the ongoing Indo-Italian synergy in Kolkata, said that it would go a long way in helping local tannery to adopt cleaner and safer technology, upgrade their quality of leather and pave the way for more closer cooperation between the Indian leather industry and their counterparts in Italy.

Incidentally India was among the largest leather producers and exporters to Italy with the total volume of sale in the sector running to more than USD 20 million.

"We hope with the setting up of the new training centre the export of India leather and leather goods would go many folds," Mr Kumar observed.

UNI