Saturday, October 27, 2018

Union Minister Hardeep S. Puri Inaugurates the Three-Day 25th Indian Plumbing Conference & Exhibition in Mumbai


(Left to Right)
Sharat V. Rao, Chairman, IPA Mumbai Chapter; Sanjay Dutt, MD of Tata Realty and Tata Housing; Hardeep Singh Puri, Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs; 
Shayne La Combre, CEO at Plumbing Industry Climate Action Centre; Gurmit Singh Arora, National President, IPA; Russ Chaney, CEO at The IAPMO Group; S.G Deolalikar, Founder and chairman of Emericus

Mumbai, October 26, 2018: With a focus on water conservation and re-use, the three-day 25th Indian Plumbing Conference & Exhibition (IPC) was inaugurated byShri Hardeep Singh Puri, Hon’ble Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, on Friday at Mumbai’s Nehru Centre in Worli. The 25th IPC is being hosted by the Indian Plumbing Association (IPA), the national body for Plumbing professionals with 4000 members and 20 chapters across the country. More than 10,000 trade visitors from plumbing and associated industries are expected to attend the conference which will conclude on Sunday with the national finals of the Indian Plumbing Professional League (IPPL), a quiz competition which saw participation from over 900 industry professionals with the aim to raise awareness on the 1000 plus pages of Plumbing codes and standards, which the IPA is trying to implement uniformly across the country. Three winning teams will then be sent for study tours to Europe and the Middle East where they will get to experience first hand, best and world class practices in the world of plumbing.

Speaking at the inauguration Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said Expressing my great satisfaction and pleasure to be with you as you celebrate this 25th anniversary of the Indian Plumbing Conference…… So, I want to compliment the people…. the founder and the four other survivors from the original "gang of five”... We are today a $ 2.7 trillion economy. Many of the problems that we see around us, need to be placed in perspective…. If you put it in a larger perspective, some of the more successful cities in the world are also facing those problems…. Something serious has gone wrong with our ability to manage our resources…. By 2030 India will have 600 million people living in urban spaces…. The urban space in India was subject to criminal neglect…. Between today and 2030 we have to build approximately…. one Chicago every year has to be built…. and that has to be green and resilient. It has to confirm to the highest standards of sustainability…. The Swachata campaign, which started as a project of the government has now become a project of the people – it is what we call a "jan andolan" and we’re well on the road…. The swachhata campaign is galloping now….You can’t build a modern home…. green and resilient without good plumbing…. It needs to conform to the highest global standards. You have a government which is sensitive to this sector. The fundamental requirement right now is to face up to the challenge of urbanization and climate challenge. In his conclusion, while talking on the importance of plumbing in dealing with man-made and natural disaster he said, “National Institute of Urban Affairs has now started looking into aspects of urban flooding and natural disaster and……Plumbing is a very important part of all these, whether you’re dealing with urban flooding or natural disaster”

Also speaking at the ceremony of the 25th Indian Plumbing Conference Mr. Gurmit Singh Arora, National President, IPA, stated, “We are proud to celebrate the silver jubilee of the Indian Plumbing conference. In the 25th year we are focusing on raising awareness about the role of plumbing in water conservation.” Further explaining the importance of plumbing he added Plumbing is one of the main constituents of the construction sector. Plumbing is not merely fixing up a tap, but constitutes the crucial part of the construction such as water supply and distribution systems, sanitation systems that include sewage and rainwater, industrial waste management etc.”

The 25th IPC is witnessing participation from the entire World Plumbing Council (WPC) Board, including Chairman WPC & CEO – Plumbing Industry Climate Action Centre, Australia; the CEO of the International Association of Plumbing & Mechanical Officials (IAPMO), USA & MD of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), and many such luminaries including the MD of Rain Water Harvesting & Infiltration Association of Japan, giving it a truly international flavor.

The 25th IPC will see talks and discussions around the theme of the World Plumbing Council 2018- the ‘Four Pillars of Plumbing’ as in ‘Practices –Standards and accountability in day-to-day work in the industry’, ‘Products – Features and quality of the materials, fittings and appliances used in plumbing work’, ‘Participation – Primarily the training requirements to work in the industry’ & ‘Protection – Measures to minimize risks and provide redressal when failures occur’.

Besides more than 50 top Indian companies in the sector inlcuding the likes of Astral Pipes, Ashirvad Pipes, Stiebel Eltron, Flow Guard Plus, Wilo, Viega, Supreme, Aquadiagnostics / IAPMO, Ebara amongst others will also be participating in the 25th IPC.

The event will also host a motivational address on water by Prabhuji Gauranga Das of ISKCON followed by a panel discussion on ‘Protection’moderated by the CII IGBC Mr. V Suresh out of the four pillars of plumbing on day two of the conference.

Plumbing today is an INR 33,000 crore industry in India, growing at around 15% per annum and has around 800,000 people employed directly or indirectly. Plumbing is a science, backed up by 1,000s’ of pages of Codes & Standards and if implemented properly can play an important role in water conservation.

About the IPA


The IPA was set up to promote the advancement of Plumbing & allied services in the country and to create awareness on the role of Plumbing & Building services in protecting health and improving environment and hygiene. IPA celebrates it’s 25th ‘Silver Jubilee Anniversary’ this year and has today grown to more than 4000 members and 20 chapters across the length and breadth of the country.

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