City of Brampton defers India trip to later in 2012
Wednesday January 18 2012 By PAM DOUGLAS A 10-day City of Brampton business mission to India originally planned for next month has been delayed by elections taking place in the Punjab and other states.

The mayor, two councillors and a city commissioner were to travel to India in February, visiting Mumbai, New Delhi and the Province of Punjab. The trip was approved by council early last year and was to focus on information communication technology (including media and entertainment), advanced manufacturing, education, life sciences and clean energy.

However, the trip has been postponed to an as-yet undetermined date later this year.

“Because of the provincial election campaign taking place in a number of Indian states, including the Punjab — a region important to Brampton — we do not feel it would be appropriate to visit at this time,” according to city spokesperson Gordon Smith.

It has not been cancelled, though.

“The City of Brampton will be travelling to India in 2012. The number of travellers and amount of time in India will likely be limited given the costs associated with the trip,” Smith said. “We will provide additional information as we move forward with planning.”

The city will look to see if there are opportunities to partner with any similar trips the provincial or federal governments might be planning, he said.

Originally, the delegation was to consist of Mayor Susan Fennell, Wards 7 & 8 Regional Councillor Gael Miles, who chairs the city’s Economic Development Committee, Wards 9 & 10 City Councillor Vicky Dhillon, and Dennis Cutajar, commissioner of economic development and communications.

At a cost estimated at $10,000 each, the trip was to cost a total of $40,000.

The delegation was to attend market and industry presentations, networking events, business roundtable discussions, and other scheduled meetings, including a three-day Nasscom Software Trade Show and India Leadership Forum in Mumbai.

The goal of the trip is to promote increased exports to India, open doors for Brampton businesses to explore opportunities, meet with key decision makers and generally promote business and municipal relationships and raise Brampton’s international profile, according to the city.

— Metroland News Service

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