Congratulating CII for taking the initiative of organizing the 1st Robo Expo and 1st Robo Conference said, “Robots have a private application and public application such as disaster management, earth quake relief, monitoring the line of control etc.”

Mr. Sibal said that presently 60% of the robotics application in India is in Auto and Auto Component Sector. We need to expand this application by surgeons and for routine usage such as reminding the elderly to have their medicines.

Minister Sibal further added that India had enormous opportunities to deliver such large-scale applications of Robotics and Automation. He emphasized the fact that India has capability to integrate software and hardware, which no other nation had. Given this capability we can create a vision for robotics leading to making new low-cost products for manufacturing.

Finance Minister, Mr. P.Chidambaram, who visited the 1st Robo Expo, 2008, while expressing happiness at the initiative taken by CII said, “I am happy to see this exhibition. We must encourage indigenous Robotics manufacturing in the country.”

While speaking at the Robo Conference, Mr. R.C.Bhargava, Chairman, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. said, “Use of Robotics does not necessarily mean that it would lead to loss of employment. Automation and robotics would create greater growth and market expansion resulting from increased competitiveness.”  For example, Maruti uses Robots extensively. In the last one year the company has not added to its workforce, inspite of increased production. But when you put out 8,00,000 cars on the road, you are actually creating jobs for half a million people in ancillary sectors, he explained.

Mr. Bhargava further added that India requires automation to ensure quality in situations where only zero defects are acceptable, in critical areas where safety and performance of the end product are important and in applications where risk and concern for safety of human beings are prime.

Emphasizing the need to expand the use of Robotics and Automation, Mr.Bhargava said, “Manufacturing and automation have a great future in India. Progress will be faster if industry and government can work together with greater trust in each other.”

Dr. Surinder Kapur, Chairman, CII Mission for Innovation and CMD, Sona Koyo Steering System Ltd, while delivering the Welcome Address at the Conference said, “We will see the increased used of Automation and Robotics at the lower end of manufacturing provided these are low cost.” We have to work towards getting companies in India to design and develop Robots and take this nascent industry forward.

Mr. C.P.Rangachar, Managing Director, Yuken India Ltd. while proposing the Vote of Thanks, promised Minister Sibal that CII would submit a policy on Robotics soon. “This Conference is a great platform for collaboration. As an outcome of the Conference, CII will set up an Association for Robotics and Automation. This Association will submit to you a policy in the next three months”, said Mr. Rangachar.  He further said, that the industry needed to be discerning as to where robots should or shouldn’t be used. They are not a panacea for every situation, he added.