Vessels worth Rs. 70 crore on display at boat show in city

Mumbai, February 25, 2011
The fifth edition of the Mumbai International Boat Show that opened yesterday has vessels ranging from Rs. 10 lakh to Rs. 70 crore from some of the largest brands on display. And invitations have been sent out to schools and colleges to visit the three-day show that wraps up on February 27 Maneck Davar, chairperson of the event, says that although countries around the world have multiple shows, the Indian market is concentrated in Mumbai. “We can’t have a show in every port city in our country because the nature of the business here is not such. So, we try to put together a good show once a year for everyone interested in marine business. It’s an effort to increase the extent of the industry by having suppliers, distributors, manufacturers, government departments and the works under one roof, so that everyone gets to see the various kinds of vessels being constructed by Indian companies,” says Davar. The show is open to the public and has a nominal entrance fee. The reason behind the move is that the organisers want more school and college kids to visit the show. “I come across a lot of children who want to know more about the marine industry,” beams Davar. “The more we open up to the public, the more the awareness about marine security will be, because they’ll know the kinds of boats that are and will be used by for security purposes.” The boat show is now part of the International Boat Industry Boat Show calendar and expects at least 20,000 footfalls in three days. Apart from security boats, an array of day boats, speedboats, luxury yachts, personal watercrafts, kayaks, boating accessories, engines, marine toys and sail boats will be on display at the show. The show is on till February 27 at MMRDA grounds in Bandra-Kurla Complex. Entry fee is Rs. 200 per person.

Marine industry offers huge potential: CII

Mumbai, Feb 25 (PTI) With 7,600 kilometres of coastline available in the country, there is a need for the government to develop infrastructure to boost the marine industry, an apex industry body today said. "Waterways is the greenest form of transport that can reduce load on the land. India needs to tap this sector and have a dialogue with the Centre to develop the marine industry as a whole by constructing the required infrastructure," CII''s Western Region Chairman Arun Nanda said at the Mumbai International Boat Show 2011, here. The industry body also demanded that Boating, which offers huge potential, should be granted a separate Industry status since it has tremendous potential. Infrastructure and Construction of Marinas are very much essential to promote Boating as an Industry, Mumbai International Boat Show''s Chairman, Maneck Davar said. Boating will also help promote water sports and leisure boating, which will lead to generating employment opportunities, he added.