LERIG - The Profile

Organized every year during the last week of January, Leather Research Industry Get-Together (LERIG) marks the beginning of the Leather week celebrations. LERIG is organized by CSIR-CLRI in association with the stakeholders of the leather sector including Council for Leather Exports, Leather and Leather Products Trade Bodies and Associations and Tanners, with support from CSIR Network Partners, Institutions and Universities. This annual event aims to provide a platform to discuss and deliberate the ideas and concerns of common interest and to evolve a comprehensive strategy for enabling an internationally competitive Leather Sector. The LERIG meet over the years has gained global participation and appreciation.

LERIG 2016 - "Positioning Indian Leather Industry in Global Landscape: Technology Way Forward"
" India is witnessing fastest growth in economic terms and is poised to become one of the largest economic powers by 2050. The estimated growth rate, for India in the next decade is about 8%. This offers immense opportunities to the business enterprises to focus on Indian model of innovation and to evolve strategies to contribute to the growth of India. The economic expansion in India is expected to impact the manufacturing sector. 50% of the population in India is expected to be less than 28 years making India the youngest country. The Government of India has laid emphasis on ‘Make in India’ program which is expected to provide employment opportunities to the burgeoning youth population. The growing global competition demands focus on productivity and creativity through technology. The employable work force needs to be aligned to these technology demands. The manufacturing sector in India, especially the leather industry, has a comparative advantage and competitive edge over its counterparts in other countries in view of raw material access and labor arbitrage. The Indian leather industry is poised for a quantum jump in performance with USD 12bn being envisaged as exports from this sector. From a material driven industry, the leather sector has transformed into a technology driven manufacturing sector. The industry comprising predominantly micro, small and medium enterprises has provided employment opportunities to about 2.5 million people in the country. The industry would need to evolve strategies and action plans to position itself strongly in the global landscape taking advantage of the supportive policies from the Government of India and the opportunities for value and volume realization in world exports. At the 50th LERIG, the measures to be taken for positioning Indian leather industry in global landscape in terms of environmental security, resource mobilization, design, leather & product innovations through technology solutions and initiatives will be discussed.