Coimbatore residents to play host during INTEC

Residents of Coimbatore can now play host to the visitors who will be here for the International Industrial Trade Fair (INTEC 2008) from February 1 to 6, 2008.

Apart from hotels, service apartments and guest houses, the event organisers plan to involve the residents to meet the accommodation needs for those will come to the fair.

K.V. Ganapathi, the INTEC chairman, says that the previous edition of the fair, which was held in 2006, had nearly two lakh visitors and 520 stalls on a total exhibition area of 7,800 sq.mt. The fair in 2008 will have close to 10,000 sq.mt of exhibition area. The number of participants and the visitor profile will also go up accordingly.

But Coimbatore does not have adequate number of hotels to provide accommodation to all of them. “Hotel facility is limited here. Some visitors and participants, especially those from foreign countries, ask for accommodation in a star hotel,” he says.

“Last year, we had to arrange accommodation at Tirupur for about 150 delegates who came from Sri Lanka,” he says. Some visitors stayed in Palakkad and travelled to the exhibition every day. Even those who come from Madurai or Hosur need accommodation for a day or two if they decide to purchase a machine at the fair. Apart from the participants and the visitors, a lot of people come here to help in erecting the stalls, etc.

Hence, the organisers have come out with a proposal to provide on the exhibition website ( www.intecexpo.com) the names and addresses of those who are willing to accommodate the visitors at their home on rent.

“The city has several apartments with the owners living elsewhere. Similarly, many of us have an extra bedroom that is normally not used by the family. These can be used by the visitors on a rental basis. They can decide whether they will be able to provide food and transportation facilities,” he says. While the visitor gets a peaceful and comfortable home stay, it is an income opportunity for the host.

The former president of the Coimbatore District Small Industries Association, D. Gandhi Kumar, points out that Dusseldorf in Germany is a major trade fair centre. Almost all the houses here accommodate visitors on a rental basis. “We have just introduced the concept to Coimbatore. We plan to organise major fairs here regularly. This will be mutually beneficial,” he says.

For details, contact INTEC 2008, CODISSIA Trade Fair Complex, Avinashi Road, Coimbatore – 641014. Telephone: 0422-2593505, 2593507. email: cointec@vsnl.com