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Mahratta Chamber of Commerce Industries and Agriculture
Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC) and the Mahratta Chamber of Commerce Industries and Agriculture (MCCIA) have agreed to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote trade. At an interactive session organized for the visiting delegation of ICCC’s India Mission 2014, Naval Bajaj, President, ICCC, and Ajay Mehta, Vice President, MCCIA, announced that the two chambers would work closely to foster bilateral economic relations between Canada and India, with special focus on Maharashtra.
In his remarks, ICCC President Naval Bajaj highlighted the role of the Chamber in promoting bilateral trade ties between Canada and India. “Over these three-and-a-half decades, we have played a pivotal role in influencing opinions and changing mindsets to help mould right policies for creating respectable space for the business people to develop their business,” he said, and added, “These policy initiatives have brought our bilateral relations to a stage where enhanced interaction and increased cooperation have become organic and endemic.”
The ICCC believes that a new chapter is being written on the Canada-India relations, a chapter that holds a promise of prosperity for both our countries. “We are the oldest bilateral organisation of any kind working on the Canada-India corridor, and we are also the largest Indian Diaspora organisation in Canada. These two aspects of our Chamber give it a unique position and perspective,” Bajaj said.
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Surendra Kumar Jain, President of MCCIA welcomed the delegation. He informed the delegates that Pune is also emerged as a hub for research and development and is a big centre for wind energy, space research, and water resources management. He informed the delegates that logistically, too, the city has access to one major and three minor ports and there were plans to work on cargo from Pune to Winnipeg.
Over 60 Pune-based businesses attended the interactive session organized at the MCCIA. The interactive session was followed by B2B meetings. In his presentation on Pune, Ajay Mehta highlighted the economic profile of the city. “With a 10 percent GDP growth annually, Pune is the hub for both automobile and information technology sectors,” he said.
Auto sector giants such as Tata Motors and Bajaj; and IT sector behemoths such as Infosys and Honeywell have made Pune their base for many years. In fact, Infosys has more employees in Pune than anywhere else in India. In addition to these powerhouses which propel the growth of the city and the region, there are over 12,400 industrial units. Agriculture, food processing, digital media companies are also thriving in and around the city. Nearly 30 % of the city’s population is below the age of 30.
In his remarks, Anant Sardeshmukh, the Director General of MCCIA emphasized the cultural and educational background of the city. He informed the visiting delegation that of the 48,000 international students who come to India, nearly 50 % choose Pune. The city and the adjoining regions boast of 61 colleges that has 23,754 students.
In the agriculture and food processing sector, too, the city and the adjoining regions have made steady progress. It ranks second in India in chicken products and second (after Gujarat) in milk products. It is also the largest producer of wine in India, accounting for 80% of India’s production.
Sohail Saeed, Director, Economic Development, Brampton, made a presentation on the city as an investment destination. Ray Chan of the Saskatchewan Government similarly made a presentation on the province.
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Kirloskar Brothers
After the interactive session with MCCIA, the delegates visited the Kirloskar Brothers Limited Platinum Facility in Pune. Sanjay Kirloskar, Chairman and Managing Director, greeted the delegation. The Platinum Facility is a heritage site for the conglomerate, which has played a pivotal role for over a century in building India’s self-reliance in agricultural mechanization and other industrial processes.
ICCC President Naval Bajaj informed the representatives of the Kirloskar group of the proactive role the Chamber has been playing in fostering B2B linkages between Canadian and Indian companies for the purpose of enhancing trade.
Sanjay Kirloskar He discussed his group’s future plans, shifting focus and the possibilities of establishing business linkages with Canada. He iterated the possibilities of synergies between his group and the province of Alberta especially on oil and gas. He also said that many of the company’s pumps could easily find a market in Canada’s mining industry.
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Sanjay Kirloskar also gave a brief overview of the group. Kirloskar Brothers Limited:
The group is:
- Largest manufacturer and exporter of centrifugal pumps from India
- Leading manufacturer of Valves and Hydel Turbines
- Energy efficient innovative pumping solutions for core sectors such as Power, Water, Irrigation and Industries
- Manufactures the largest pumps by size and horsepower in India
- Commands the highest market capitalization amongst the pump manufacturers in India
- Pioneered centrifugal pumps in India and introduced the following in India:
- Split case pumps, process pumps, large vertical mixed flow pumps
- Primary / secondary moderator pumps for liquid sodium for fast breeder reactor technology for Nuclear Power Plants
Naval Bajaj, President, ICCC, emphasized the existing synergies between Kirloskar Brothers Ltd. and the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce, which had been the main reason for visiting its facilities during the India Mission 2014. ICCC's India Mission 2014 delegation's visit to Kirloskar Brothers Limited was facilitated by Vinod Munshi of the IIT Alumni Canada.
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