The Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) has requested the Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu to consider procuring their raw materials from the MSMEs of Coimbatore.

In a memorandum submitted to the minister in New Delhi, the ICCI delegation, led by its president D. Nandakumar appealed that the MSMEs from Coimbatore, especially in the engineering, casting, and automobiles sectors, be given priority by the Ministry.

Claiming that the MSMEs contribute as much as the large industries owned by the public and private sectors, Nandakumar said that Coimbatore was the hub of innovations and best practices in agro industries sourcing, automobiles, foundries, and engineering for over 100 years.

In addition to this, the Chamber has requested an overnight express train between Coimbatore and Bengaluru, the upgrading of Peelamedu station as a model station, and the speedy completion of the Podanur-Pollachi gauge conversion, which ran into delays due to hurdles in acquiring the land.