SGAF announces anti-Mopa awareness campaign

PRESS RELEASE

 

Friday, March 01, 2013; Margao, Goa: The South Goa Action Forum or SGAF – a newly formed umbrella association of small businesses, tourist agencies, taxi operators, small hotels, motels and restaurants in Colva, Varca, Betul, Canacona, Palolem and the entire coastal stretch of South Goa today formally announced its anti-Mopa awareness campaign. The SGAF and its members have vowed to fight against the Mopa Airport project tooth and nail.

Speaking to media persons on Friday, Wilfred Fernandes, President of SGAF said, “We will fight tooth and nail. We will take our fight out on the streets, in the courts and in the Goa State Assembly. We will take our fight against Mopa to Delhi. Any politician who supports Mopa is unwelcome in South Goa. Goa does not need a Mopa or for that matter another airport for the next 10-15 years. The same funds could be used to create opportunities for employment in the poor stretches of Goa. It is unlikely that mining will resume in Goa for at least one more season. The Government is well aware that people are starving and unemployment is at an all time low in the state. Goa tops the list of states with the lowest employment index. It is a shame that the Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar is rooting for Mopa with all his might and fast tracking the process. Several reports have pointed out that Mopa is not viable for Goa for another 15 years and if Mopa comes up within 3-5 years the airport at Dabolim will be defunct and die a natural death.

Tourism in south Goa has been at an all time low this year. It is the worst year for businesses when one compares figures of the last ten years. Every shack and restaurant owner in south Goa will agree to this fact and is reeling from the increasing cost of raw materials. In spite of this glaring fact, the government is going out of its way to promote Mopa and we will not allow this. Politicians from both major parties in Goa – the BJP and the Congress have invested heavily in land and real estate around Mopa and the Government is merely trying to fill the coffers of these speculators who will be able to resell the property at much higher rates or develop the plots into huge residential complexes or hotels.

 The SGAF will publish 20,000 copies of a booklet titled What Mopa means to South Goa? for free distribution to all restaurants, travel agencies, and establishments in south Goa as part of its anti-Mopa campaign. It also intends to hold public meetings every Sunday in different parts of south Goa to create awareness about the ills and hardships of Mopa for the people of south Goa. An opinion poll or a referendum will also be conducted in April, said Fernandes.

 For more news and articles on Mopa Airport check newz66.wordpress.com

SpeakGoa demands judicial inquiry into Sunburn Scam allegations

PRESS RELEASE

Thursday 28^th February 2013, Panjim; Goa: SpeakGoa has demanded a judicial inquiry into allegations of corruption and tax evasion during Sunburn 2012 held in North Goa in the last week of December 2012. The Manohar Parrikar-led government in Goa has overlooked and turned a blind-eye to the allegations of bribery and tax evasion totally over Rs 15 crore. As per our figures, about Rs 5 core were distributed as bribes, kickbacks and other freebees and given out as largesse to various government and police officials, including MLAs and others in positions of power to enable the event to go on “smoothly”and to ensure that the organizers were not pulled up on any minor or major counts at the last moment or while the event was in progress.

In addition to the above Rs 5 crore paid under-the-table a tax evasion of about Rs 13 crore is quite likely given the numbers present at the venue on the three days of the event.

The Managing Director of Percept Mr Harinder Singh – organizers of Sunburn, has gone on record in writing stating that the maximum numbers of free passes were given out and the increase in the number of free passes was over 200 per cent this year (2012). In our opinion, free passes which were given to the Tourism Department for distribution to celebrities and other prominent citizens of Goa were sold in black and even at lower rates than the official rates on the last day in full view of entertainment tax and corporate tax officials. The Commissionerate of Commercial Taxes (CCT) deployed only 8-10 inspectors when there should have been at least 300 inspectors to catch touts red-handed given that there was a crowd of over 5 lakh persons in the vicinity of the event and in the Candolim area on the last day of the event.  Eyewitnesses say that there were about 80 to 100 touts selling passes in black quite openly. The government very well knows that there is a huge black marketing of passes during such events, very often by the organizers themselves. In spite of this, the government failed to take adequate steps to control and halt black-marketing of tickets.

We have reason to believe that Rs 90 lakh to Rs 110 lakh worth of tickets were sold in the “free or complimentary category” on the last day alone, and were sold unofficially in black outside the event venue. No entertainment tax was paid on these tickets and the state lost valuable revenue causing a loss of about Rs 13 crore to the State Exchequer

About Rs 5 cr of bribes, kickbacks and free passes for govt officials at Sunburn 2012 alleges SpeakGoa

Social forum SpeakGoa has accused the Manohar Parrikar-led government  in Goa of overlooking and turning a blind-eye to over Rs 5 crore of bribes, kickbacks and other freebees which were given out as largesse to various government and police officials, including MLAs and others in positions of power to enable the event to go on “smoothly”. Without naming anyone specifically, SpeakGoa through a press release issued on Thursday said, “We have been investigating the loss of revenue to the State of Goa through our own limited sources and with the available data from various government departments. It is very evident that over Rs 5 core of bribes, kickbacks and “gifts” were given to various government officials, government departments including the police and other enforcement agencies to turn a blind eye and ensure that the organizers were not pulled up on any minor or major counts at the last moment or while the event was in progress.

Earlier independent Fatorda MLA and convener of the Goemkar movement Vijai Sardesai, had alleged that about Rs 2.5 crore of Sunburn tickets were allegedly sold in black, marked as complimentary or free passes thus avoiding entertainment tax on them. Sardesai has been harping all along that several top ranking officials, including those from the Tourism Ministry and the Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC), alleging that government and police officials including MLAs got huge paybacks and bribes.

According to the SpeakGoa press release, Harinder Singh Managing Director of Percept had openly claimed in writing that the maximum numbers of free passes were given out and the increase in the number of free passes was over 200 per cent this year (2012). SpeakGoa has alleged that free passes given to the Tourism Department for distribution to celebrities and other prominent citizens of Goa were sold in black and even at lower rates than the official rates on the last day in full view of entertainment tax and corporate tax officials. The Commissionerate of Commercial Taxes (CCT) deployed only 8-10 inspectors. There should have been at least 300 inspectors to catch touts red-handed given that there was a crowd of over 5 lakh persons in the vicinity of the event and in the Candolim area on the last day of the event.  According to SpeakGoa, “Eyewitnesses say that there were about 80 to 100 touts selling passes in black quite openly. The government very well knows that there is a huge black marketing of passes during such events, very often by the organizers themselves. What steps were taken to prevent this and how many touts were arrested?”

SpeakGoa has alleged that Rs 90 lakh to Rs 110 lakh worth of tickets were sold in the “free or complimentary category” on the last day alone, and were sold unofficially in black outside the event venue. No entertainment tax was paid on these tickets and the state lost valuable revenue.  Earlier during the event, Sandesh Prabhudesai of HCN TV had claimed that there was almost 90 per cent of tax evasion by the organizers of Sunburn and the state of Goa lost about Rs 10.3 crore in 2011. In 2012 the news channel claimed that the tax collected should have been in the range of Rs 30 crore. SpeakGoa has alleged that the state exchequer lost about Rs 13 crore at the minimum this year due to tax evasion and black-marketing of complimentary passes. “Our estimates of the crowd at the event after speaking to hundreds of eye witnesses and people who attended the event shows beyond doubt that the State should have got at least Rs 13 crore in entertainment tax,” the SpeakGoa spokesperson has alleged.

Goa completely ignored in Budget 2013: FPEEG

PRESS RELEASE

 

Thursday 28^th February 2013, Panjim; Goa: The Forum for Promoting Employment & Entrepreneurship in Goa (FPEEG) is disappointed with the Union Budget 2013 for the simple reason that it has nothing specific for the State of Goa which has recorded the highest rate of unemployment in the country. Tourism – both domestic and international is one of the major sources of revenue but the 2 per cent hike in Service Tax both for the hospitality industry as well as for the security services industry could have a negative impact with more tourists turning to the unorganized sector instead of patronizing restaurants and hotels in the organized sector.

Many small beach shacks and restaurants in the coastal belt are finding it difficult to survive in present scenario. These beach shacks and restaurants depend on the inflow of tourist traffic, which is only seasonal. The hike in Service Tax will hit them hard and many of them may prefer to fudge records to make ends meet. The budget makes no allocation or compensation for the State of Goa given the mining mess in the State with no early respite in site. The attempt to increase revenue through the indirect taxes method will only see a price rise, which will affect tourists both domestic and foreign, most of whom are already disheartened with the increasing prices of food, board and lodge and fuel in the State.

Goa was largely dependent on the long staying tourists from the UK and the rest of Europe who came in charters and were the big spenders who stayed for durations ranging from a few weeks to a few months.  With the hike in prices of fuel, food, accommodation and the like, these tourists are moving to other locations like Thailand and other south-east Asian countries where the prices of agricultural produce and accommodation are much lower.

The Railway Budget too does not hold much promise for Goa. The need of the hour was additional Express trains from Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi particularly during the peak tourist season from November to May which with the exception of one or two have been completely ignored by the Railway Budget.

About FPEEG:

FPEEG or Forum for Promoting Entrepreneurship & Employment in Goa strives to create awareness about employment opportunities in the Small-Scale sector besides providing vocational training and guidance | General Secretary: Maneesh Arora | Email: fpeeg.goa@gmail.com

Rahul Gandhi kick starts Congress party’s functioning with an eye on polls

By Martin De Souza – GNN

Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi is all set to tone up the functioning of the Congress party doing away with the old system of one-line resolutions from states authorizing the high command to decide candidates in the elections. Sources in the central Congress war-room say that Rahul is taking keen interest in the functioning of the Goa Pradesh Congress Committee (GPCC) and some drastic announcements are likely.

Congress sources said Rahul, who has called a meeting of PCC presidents and CLP leaders in Delhi on February 15, could instead ask for elaborate procedures to make ticket distribution a foolproof affair.

This will be the first meeting Rahul will have with state leaders after his elevation as the Congress vice-president. He has often lamented the absence of rules and regulations governing the organization and the ticket distribution process. Apparently, Churchhill Alemao has already sent feelers to the Congress Vice President that he is keen on contesting the Lok Sabha polls from south Goa.

Consultations by the Congress vice-president are expected to be a day-long affair at a time when party men have been increasingly voicing concern over the ticket distribution process. The meeting assumes significance as Assembly elections of nine states, including Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Delhi, are scheduled this year and the Lok Sabha elections are not far away.

As part of the efforts to build up a new leadership at various levels, the AICC has already decided that the number of terms for presidents of the PCC and DCC should be restricted to two and the tenure of each term should be not more than three years.

Rahul is expected to apprise himself with the various problems being faced by the party in different states to help understand the steps needed to tone up the organisations there.

Soon after being made the Vice-President, he has held three rounds of consultations with AICC office bearers.

Though Congress is in power in a dozen odd states, Andhra Pradesh is the only major state where it has a government on its own. Problems have cropped up there due to the Telangana issue and emergence of the YSR Congress.

Congress is out of power for several years in major states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu – a cause for concern for the new Vice President.

Two new “Non Congress” voices are being considered for the post of spokesperson of the grand old party. Tehseen Poonawalla and Sanjay Jha are the two names doing the rounds. Both Tehseen and Sanjay are seen on prime time news toeing the Congress line. While Poonawalla a Muslim face is in his late 20s who connects with the youth, Sanjay’s experience in running the portal Hamara Congress as well as his business connections may make him attractive to the business community. The think tank in the Congress feels that the party has in recent times not been able to reflect the sentiments of the young and business class who seem to be disillusioned with the party. A little birdie told us that both Poonawalla and Jha are extensively consulting the Congress leadership on how to position itself online and on the social media.

 

Non-Congress Voices for the post of party spokesperson?

 

Close on the heels of a reshuffle in the top echelons of the Nationalist Congress Party, Goa leadership, We have learnt that the Congress at the Centre is believed to be going in for a complete image makeover.

In anticipation of the Lok Sabha polls, the Congress party has got very aggressive online and launched several internet and social media initiatives to cater to a new and younger India -those in the know of things say that an AICC reshuffle is soon on the cards as also a CWC make over.

Rahul Gandhi and his team are keen to get their “own people” in positions of authority. Also on the cards is a reshuffle in the official spokespersons of the Congress Party. Under the chairmanship of Digvijaya Singh, a media committee has been formed that is looking at media and publicity strategies for the upcoming general elections.

It seems that two new “Non Congress” voices are being considered for the post of spokesperson of the grand old party. Tehseen Poonawalla and Sanjay Jha are the two names doing the rounds. Both Tehseen and Sanjay are seen on prime time news toeing the Congress line. While Poonawalla a Muslim face is in his late 20s who connects with the youth, Sanjay’s experience in running the portal Hamara Congress as well as his business connections may make him attractive to the business community. The think tank in the Congress feels that the party has in recent times not been able to reflect the sentiments of the young and business class who seem to be disillusioned with the party. A little birdie told us that both Poonawalla and Jha are extensively consulting the Congress leadership on how to position itself online and on the social media.

Tehseen Poonawalla

 

 

 

Inter-state bus operators triple fares for Goa Carnival, leave thousands disappointed, says SpeakGoa

PRESS RELEASE

At least 15,000 youth from Mumbai unable to attend Goa Carnival 2013 due to non-availability of reasonably priced transport on Thursday and Friday – SpeakGoa Survey in Mumbai

 

South Goa Congress MP  Francisco Sardinha hits out at CCP and CM Manohar Parrikar for lack of inter-state travel arrangements for the Carnival.

 

Estimated Rs 5 crore loss in overall business in Goa during Carnival 2013 due to scarcity of reasonably priced transport – SpeakGoa study.

 

 

Saturday, February 09, 2013, Panjim, Goa: Thousands of Mumbaikars and Goan youth working in Mumbai are stranded and unable to attend the Carnival celebrations in their home state over the weekend for lack of available transport. The AC and non-AC tourist bus operators have more than doubled the fares and some bus operators were charging Rs 2500-Rs 3000 for an AC Volvo bus semi-sleeper bus ticket from Mumbai to Goa. The normal fare is Rs 700 to Rs 800 and can go as low as Rs 500 on non-peak week days. However, the bus operators like Neeta Volvo, VRL and many others were charging nothing less than Rs 1200 even for those who booked the tickets a week in advance. On Thursday, the fare went up to Rs 1800 per seat and on Friday evening some travel agents who had tickets available were charging up to Rs 2500 per seat. The rate for a Volvo sleeper seat from Borivili in suburban Mumbai to Goa was quoted at Rs 3000, says Salvador De Costa of SpeakGoa who conducted a survey in the Goan-dominated areas of Mumbai like Borivili and Dhobi Talao at Marine Lines.

The results of a survey and study conducted by SpeakGoa shows that approximately the State of Goa will loose Rs 5 crore in overall business in the coming week due to the scarcity of good, reasonably priced inter-state connectivity during the Goa Carnival 2013 and about 15,000 to 25,000 youth from Mumbai who would have loved to be in Goa over the weekend could not make it only due to the non availability of reasonably priced transport. Youngsters earning approximately Rs 25,000 a month in Mumbai cannot afford to pay 20 per cent of their month’s salary only on travel. Even those who made it to Goa have drastically reduced their expenditure in Goa.

According to SpeakGoa, there are over 50,000 Goan youngsters who work in Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore in call centres and financial services sector. Most of these youth wanted to attend the Carnival celebrations in the State but were unable to make it due to the last minute hike in bus fares, opined De Costa. SpeakGoa will submit a memorandum to the Department of Tourism, the Tourism Minister and the Chief Minister’s office on Monday, De Costa added.

When SpeakGoa brought this to the notice of South Goa Congress MP Francisco Sardinha he said, “The BJP-led State Government is to blame for the non-availability of cheap transport for Goans working in cities like Mumbai, Bangalore and Pune. The Government should have approached the Centre or the Railways and arranged for a few special trains from Bangalore and Mumbai which should have been well-publicized in advance to enable Goans to make bookings. During election rallies and other political events, all political parties arrange buses to ferry supporters. Why couldn’t the CCP or the Carnival Committee in conjunction with the Department of Tourism arrange special buses from Mumbai to Goa. SpeakGoa figures show that its not just Goans but the state has been deprived of at least two lakh tourists from all over India who would have loved to attend the Carnival celebrations provided reasonably priced transport could have been made available over the weekend. “On one hand we crib that there are not enough quality tourists but we make no attempts to help them get reasonably priced transport and accommodation,” Sardinha said. Several other MLAs both from the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress in Goa admitted that the travel fares were a huge deterrent to the medium-budget Indian tourist and was a cause for concern.

SpeakGoa will file a PIL in the High Court of Bombay at Goa on the predatory pricing tactics employed by inter-state Tourist Bus operators during the Goa Carnival and during the Christmas and New Year season. These operators double and triple the rates, creating a black market for tickets instead of trying to match the demand for seats by temporarily increasing the number of buses on the sector. “These tourists’ and travel operators are killing the goose that lays the golden egg when it comes to tourism in Goa. Traveling fares have become so expensive that tourists have to spend more on travel than what they would spend on staying in Goa for 2-3 days. An air ticket from Mumbai to Goa even on a low cost airline was Rs 12,000 per person on Friday making it impossible even for the medium budget tourist to fly to Goa for the Carnival. Full service airlines were charging Rs 15,000 on Thursday, on Friday the Mumbai-Goa fare went up to Rs 18,000/-, said De Costa. How will Goa get more tourists, if the to-and-fro fares are so high and the State does not do anything about it, demanded SpeakGoa?

NOTE TO MEDIA PERSONS: THE STUDY QUOTED IN THE PRESS RELEASE ABOVE WAS CONDUCTED BY 8 SPEAK GOA VOLUNTEERS WHO ARE ANALYSTS / PROFESSORS / EXPERTS IN BUSINESS MANAGEMENT, MARKETS & ECONOMY WITH ABOUT AN AVERAGE EXPERIENCE OF OVER 25 YEARS EACH IN THEIR RESPECTIVE FIELDS AND WELL-VERSED WITH THE STATE OF GOA. AS THEY ARE ASSOCIATED WITH VARIOUS PRIVATE ORGANIZATIONS THEY HAVE PREFERRED ANONYMITY. SPEAKGOA HAS HENCE WITHHELD THE NAMES OF THE RESEARCHERS AND ANALYSTS. SPEAKGOA IS A SOCIAL FORUM ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN SPREADING AWARENESS ON ECONOMIC AND CIVIC ISSUES IN GOA.

SpeakGoa survey finds 30 per cent ill-trained dentists practicing in Goa

PRESS RELEASE

Saturday, February 02, 2013; Panjim, Goa: A comprehensive survey conducted by social forum SpeakGoa across the length and breadth of Goa has found several dentists and dental clinics with inadequately and ill-trained dentists offering advanced dental services in Goa and charging clients at their own whims and fancy. The survey was conducted among the beach areas of North and South Goa, particularly Candolim, Calangute, Baga and included the cities of Panaji, Margao, Ponda and Vasco. About 150 dentists were interviewed by SpeakGoa and it was found that several dentists who have a basic bacherlor’s or BDS qualification practice and offer implants and claim to be experts in implantology when they are not qualified to do so.

Most dentists interviewed by SpeakGoa preferred to speak off-record, however, a very senior dentist who has a doctorate in the subject, besides being a researcher and has been a faculty at the Goa Dental College said, “A dentist who is a BDS and took 8 years to complete her BDS (after failing 4 times) is now offering implants in the Candolim area at her clinic. A BDS is not trained to offer or do implants unless he or she does a comprehensive course or a post graduation in dentistry.” He came down heavily on “businessmen” running dental clinics in the beach belt of North Goaand even counseling patients. A senior official from the Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry when informed by SpeakGoa about the situation which is also affecting tourists who are “conned” as the failure rate of implants increases greatly, said there was a meeting of senior doctors and dentists at the GCCI recently and they took up this issue of “ill-trained doctors, dentists and so-called cosmetic experts”. This is earning Goa a bad name abroad and Dental Tourism has come to a virtual standstill due to the problem of quacks and ill-trained doctors, he said.

In its survey and report on Medical Tourism in Goa, SpeakGoa found that Beauty Salons, Spas, Hair-Cutting Salons and others including GPs offering Botox services and other cosmetic surgery-related services in several parts of Goa when they are not qualified to do so. About 30 per cent of dentists in Goa are technically not qualified to offer or do implants but are still doing so, the SpeakGoa report claims. Director General of GCCI R S Kamat concurred that some salons are offering Botox treatment or even bust implants. “We have appealed to the government to formulate a regulation with respect to dental implants, Botox treatments etc and to lay down guidelines on what are the minimum qualifications for a professional required to offer services like dental implants or Botox treatments in the state. Says Prof. (Dr.) Aquaviva S. Fernandes, “Yes it is true that several dentists who are ill-trained and ill-qualified offering implants and other services. A dentist with a BDS – who may have taken years to pass his or her BDS starts practice and offers advanced treatment. Many of them are financed by businessmen who set up and finance clinics in the beach belt.”

Several dentists who spoke to SpeakGoa concurred with this trend which is growing particularly in the beach belts of Goa. Another senior dentist with about 20 years of practice in Goa said, “Besides ill-qualified dentists, there is the problem of quacks who come from other states and set up shop for a few peak months of the tourist season. The clinics are operated by business men and each year there is a new dentist practicing at the clinic.” The senior dentists called for a dedicated association to look into the matter and both self-regulation by the industry as well as government regulation on a war footing.

Designer Umair Zafar’s glam line-up for La Mode Wedding Festival at Fahrenheit Hotels & Resorts

GOA NEWZ NETWORK

Fashion designer Umair Zafar has lined up a host of glam dolls to walk the ramp for the La Mode Wedding Festival at Fahrenheit Hotels and Resorts, Baga in Goa. While Umair Zafar was not ready to reveal the names of the models and actresses who would walk the ramp, a little birdie told us that Femina Miss India runner up Ridhima Pai, actresses Sakshi Pradhan, Gauhar Khan, Sayali Bhagat, Nisha Kothari and many more may walk the ramp at the super glam event.

Fahrenheit Hotels and Resorts, Baga is all set to host the La Mode Wedding Festival on 16th and 17th February this year. Says Mumbai-based celebrity fashion designer Umair Zafar, one of the main participants at the La Mode Wedding Festival, “All participating designers at the La Mode Wedding Festival are burning the mid-night oil, preparing exotic collections and other related bridal wear. About 20 designers from different parts of India are participating in this event and it will be a great collection of bridal wear all at one place. The event will also showcase other wedding-related participants like stylists, make up experts, jewelry and accessory designers etc. Some of the designers who have confirmed their participation include Verma Demello, Preeti Jhawar, Meghna Medhi and Tanuja from Guwhati. The bridal wear brand “The Miss” from Mumbai will also be part of the exhibition. Goan designer Wendell Rodrigues will not be able to participate due to prior commitments in Chennai during the same time.

La Mode International is one of India’s premier fashion and lifestyle magazines, since 1990 and has launched many faces in the past who were upcoming models and who are known names in Bollywood today for eg Malaika Arora Khan, Sushma Reddy, Namrata Shirodkar , Rahul Dev, Tisca Chopra, Priyanshu, Aryan Ved and many more. Besides well-known models (and now actors) like Arjun Rampal, Madhu Sapre, Milind Soman, Candice Pinto, Aanchal Kumar and many more were associated with La Mode International.

La Mode launched their E-magazine in 2003 along with the print edition. Says Baljeet Olhan, editor and publisher of La Mode International, “Considering the current global warming scenario and the Save the Planet campaign all over the world, we decided to support the Go Green Cause and from December 2012 completely eliminated the print edition. The magazine is now only in the E-mag version and is proud to present to Goa the first edition of the La Mode Goa Wedding Festival.”

A fashion show each day of the event will form the main attraction of the event which will be followed by an after party, explains Umair Zafar.

Fahrenheit Hotels and Resorts gears up for the La Mode Wedding Festival at Baga

Thursday 24^th January 2013; Panjim, Goa: Fahrenheit Hotels and Resorts, Baga is all set to host the La Mode Wedding Festival on 16th and 17th February this year. Says Mumbai-based celebrity fashion designer Umair Zafar, one of the main participants at the La Mode Wedding Festival, “All participating designers at the La Mode Wedding Festival are burning the mid-night oil, preparing exotic collections and other related bridal wear. About 20 designers from different parts of India are participating in this event and it will be a great collection of bridal wear all at one place. The event will also showcase other wedding-related participants like stylists, make up experts, jewelry and accessory designers etc. Some of the designers who have confirmed their participation include Verma Demello, Preeti Jhawar, Meghna Medhi and Tanuja from Guwhati. The bridal wear brand “The Miss” from Mumbai will also be part of the exhibition. Goan designer Wendell Rodrigues will not be able to participate due to prior commitments in Chennai during the same time.

La Mode International is one of India’s premier fashion and lifestyle magazines, since 1990 and has launched many faces in the past who were upcoming models and who are known names in Bollywood today for eg Malaika Arora Khan, Sushma Reddy, Namrata Shirodkar , Rahul Dev, Tisca Chopra, Priyanshu, Aryan Ved and many more. Besides well-known models (and now actors) like Arjun Rampal, Madhu Sapre, Milind Soman, Candice Pinto, Aanchal Kumar and many more were associated with La Mode International.

La Mode launched their E-magazine in 2003 along with the print edition. Says Baljeet Olhan, editor and publisher of La Mode International, “Considering the current global warming scenari