Paris Motor Show woes Indian visitors

The world's oldest automobile exhibition - the Paris Motor Show - expects to attract more Indian tourists and visitors at this year's edition, its organisers said Wednesday.

"We expect to attract more Indian visitors, exhibitors and want to promote the show in India. We have had Bajaj and Mahindra from the Indian automobile industry which have participated in the Paris Motor Show. Even Tata Motors through their subsidiary Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has been present at the show," Thierry Hesse, executive director, Paris International Motor Show told IANS.

The show which was first organised in 1895 has been showcasing itself in several international cities to promote the mega automobile event which two years back saw a total footfall of 1,231,416 visitors and manufacturers from around 120 countries.

"We can not distinguish between visitors but around 1,000-2,000 Indians visited the show last time. This year we expect a rise in this number as nearly 70-75 percent of the world's automobile manufacturers would be present at the show."

Even the French envoy François Richier said that the co-operation between the two countries is of utmost importance and exchange of know-how between both the sides are growing.

"Many French part manufacturers are present in India providing employment and know-how to the Indian automobile industry. We are also encouraging more Indians to visit the motor show," the envoy said.

French automobile industry sold around two million cars last year and is ranked as fourth largest in the world.