Secuirity curbs may cut Auto Expo visitors by 50%

Auto Expo 2012 is likely to have 50 per cent lesser visitors than the last edition with the organisers setting a limit of 1,00,000 people per day owing to safety considerations.

Only 70,000 general visitors would be allowed to enter the Pragati Maidan premises on first come first serve basis on each day of the Auto Expo, to be held from Jan 5 to Jan 11. About 30,000 slots are already reserved for the exhibitors.

The 2010 edition of Auto Expo saw 1.2 million visitors excluding exhibitors, translating into a daily footfall of about 171,000 people. “We have to make the Auto Expo more convenient for those interested and make it less chaotic, unlike the previous one. On any given day, a total of only one lakh people will be inside the Pragati Maidan,” said Rajive Kaul, head of the Auto Expo steering committee.

The previous edition of Auto Expo drew flak for chaos and poor management. Industry lobbies CII (confederation of Indian industry), Siam (society of Indian automobile manufacturers) and Acma (automotive component manufacturers association) are the organisers for the auto expo.

Siam said the auto show would see around 50 launches, including 32 cars, nine two-wheelers and six commercial vehicles. About eight models will mark their global debut at the expo.

Tickets have been priced at Rs 150 for general public and Rs 500 for business visitors per person. The Auto Expo will have around 1,500 participants from 24 countries with exhibitor presence in 16 halls.