The 11th edition of Delhi Auto Expo that gained much exposure due to the showcasing of new cars and technologies by record-breaking magnitude of participants, turned out to be a fiasco in terms of management. Right from the opening day of the Auto Expo, joint efforts of Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA), Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) proved useless.
As a matter of fact, the CII was solely accountable for registering and issuing media passes meant for the 'Media Days'. Apart from a few passes that managed to reach the counter at Gate 1, rest all were not even printed by the concerned authority. However, the officials at Mavcomm Consulting Private Limited came out to the rescue as they made effective efforts to calm down the agitated media and arrange passes for the left outs.
Due to the random distribution of free passes, the regular media was accompanied by general public too that made situations worse at the venue. There was absence of proper identification mechanism that would have easily sifted out the actual media and the pretentious ones.
Visitors at the Auto Expo had no clue whatsoever as to where they were heading to. The 2012 Delhi Auto Expo has exposed a number of loopholes in the functioning of the management, with the PR department deserving an immediate pull up. The media complained about the irresponsible attitude worn by the event executives and lashed out at the organisers for non-availability for press releases at the concerned areas.
It seems that SIAM has made desperate efforts to fit-in maximum number of car makers without paying heed to aspects like pubic movement and high footfall. The presence of Bollywood celebrities added much fuel to fires as the media arena was inundated by a huge crowd and resulted in a complete mess. In its desperation of pulling masses, CII provided passes to everyone and anyone that can be considered as the root cause of the whole ruckus.
Sensing a possible mismanagement at the venue, Ford, Fiat, Jaguar Land Rover and Bajaj opted to be on the safer side by carrying out launches at separate locations just before the opening of Auto Expo. It must be noted that contrary to the unfavourable situations persisting at the stalls, auto companies like Harley Davidson, Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz were successful in using the media in the best possible form. Mercedes-Benz was able to avoid any kind of mishappening owing to the fact that the company booked the biggest pavilion at the 2012 Delhi Auto Expo.
Seeing the minuses that emerged as a spoilsport at the venue, the organisers are planning to mend their ways by possibly changing the Auto Expo schedule and shifting the venue outside the city for the next time.
