Delhi Auto Expo says no to over 100 firms due to space crunch

New Delhi, Jan 3 (PTI) Over 100 exhibitors from across the globe have been denied permission to participate at the forthcoming 11th Auto Expo here due to space limitations at Pragati Maidan, the venue of the biennial show. The organisers have decided to restrict the number of people present inside the venue to 100,000 daily, including 30,000 people from the exhibitors' side, a move that could cost the Delhi Auto Expo its tag of being the world's second-largest auto show in terms of footfalls. "Over 100 firms have been denied permissions on two criteria -- late entry and past history of participation," Auto Expo 2012 Steering Committee Chairman Rajive Kaul told reporters here today. Out of these, about 60 exhibitors are from overseas countries, while the rest are domestic companies, he added. The show will now present 1,500 participants from 24 nations, including the US, China, Thailand and Turkey. "Pragati Maidan is going to be a difficult venue for expanding the show in future. We are examining at present how to address this issue. It is a big question and a big decision has to be made on whether we will stay here or relocate to a new place," Kaul said. He said, however, the show will not move out of India's National Capital Region (NCR). The organisers had earlier explored the possibility of shifting the venue elsewhere in the NCR -- to the 40-km off Greater Noida, in particular -- but abandoned the plan due to the lack of proper connectivity, he said. The latest edition of the exhibition will be spread across 115,000 square metres of space, compared to 125,000 square metres in 2010. With over two million visitors at the 2010 Auto Expo, the organisers had claimed that India's auto show was the world's second-largest after the Shanghai auto show. As many as 50 global brands will showcase their products at the expo and there will be 50 new launches across all vehicle segments at the event, which will be open to the public from January 7 to 11. The main attractions will include the unveiling of 24 cars by domestic companies and eight by global players, besides eight two-wheelers by homegrown firms. The 11th Auto Expo will also see Netherlands-based commercial vehicles maker Paccar, UK motorcycle brand Triumph and US off-road vehicle and bike-maker Polaris Industries showcasing their products here for the first time. PTI