Channabasappa Chandrasekhar Hondadkatti has recently taken over as President of The Belgaum Chamber of Commerce and Industries. An old timer to the Chamber, he has been a witness of the good times, upheaval and the transition. He is optimistic enough to accomplish his set goals within the stipulated tenure of one year. Excerpts from an informal interaction with him in Belagavi some time back:
Q: What about the jurisdiction of The Belgaum Chamber of Commerce and the industrial scenario of the district?
CC Hondadkatti: Actually, in the Belagavi district only Belagavi has industries. There are some in Khanapur Taluk, but by and large, there are no other industries in the remaining Talukas. Of course, there are some industries like Glaxo, Indal and many other big industries which don’t come under the purview of the Belagavi Chamber of Commerce and Industries. However, there are traders across the district and we can definitely develop this sector.
Q: What plans do you have to expand the activities all over the district?
CC Hondadakatti: My aim is, in fact, I told the same at the time of my installation; many people in the Talukas don’t know about the Chamber. So, we need to go to places like Khanapur, and Gokak among others to create awareness. Belagavi Chamber of Commerce and Industries has its own value. Government will listen to us. Wherever you go to meet, like the Deputy Commissioner, Superintendent of Police, and City Corporation Commissioner, they give importance to us as the Belagavi Chamber of Commerce and Industries is an apex body representing the industries.
Q: What type of industries are more in Belagavi?
CC Hondadkatti: Earlier Belagavi was famous for hydraulics, but things have changed over a period of time and now you have foundries that are large in numbers. We have about 150 small foundries and around 20-25 bigger foundries which are also in the export business. They are exporting iron castings to the US and Germany. For instance, the Ashoka Group owned by Ashok Humbarwadi is in export business. Belagavi is also famous for hydraulics, hydraulic press, hydraulic systems, poly hydraulics and things like that. In fact, we have members who are into manufacturing, what can be called the brain of the hydraulic systems. Since the beginning, these crankshafts for automobiles like Trucks and all are being manufactured here.
Q: What about the bodybuilding of Trucks, since Belgavi is also well known for Trucks bodybuilding?
CC Hondadkatti: Bodybuilding is different again. In fact, bodybuilding is of wooden material.
Q: You were mentioning about the crankshaft manufacturing?
CC Hondadkatti: Belagavi is equally famous for the manufacturing of crankshafts made out of iron and plugs. This forging activity also happens in a big way here. However, the Pune-based Bharat Forge, one of the leading companies in the country gets the final product done from various units here. Raw castings come from Pune but the final product is done here, which is later used by Ashok Leyland, Tata and other companies involved in Truck manufacturing.
Q: What do you intend to do within your one-year tenure?
CC Hondadkatti: The Belagavi Chamber doesn’t have funds of its own. Of course, we have our own building to function. Thanks to our previous president, he has been able to make the structure of the first floor of the office building. There were problems like leakage and all; I have decided to complete it and give it for rent to have permanent income to the Chamber. It is more than 2,000 square feet in area. We are connected with a lot of departments like GST, Pollution Control Board, Labour, DC, and Corporation among many others. We are also proud that we happen to be the highest revenue payers’ to the government.
Q: What problems are you facing in the industrial area?
CC Hondadkatti: We have an industrial area but don’t have proper infrastructure like roads, water and drainage. Jagadish Shettar as an Industries Minister had visited the industrial area and we took him around to show the pathetic plight to no avail as he did nothing. But, thanks to Abhay Patil, South Belagavi MLA, he has taken up the project at a cost of 70 crores. He has initiated several measures and roads have been laid now. There is no water supply and drainage system for which we will have to fight again. At the same time, we are indebted to Abhay Patil for the work done so far.
Q: How do look at your journey so far?
CC Hondadkatti: I did my schooling and PUC in Belagavi. After completing the 10th standard in 1976 PUC later joined the BE degree course in 1978 at BVB College of Engineering and finished the same in Mechanical Engineering in 1983. Although most of my friends were into Civil Engineering, I opted for Mechanical Engineering. Immediately after completing the degree I went to Bengaluru and joined a small-scale industry. I served there for two years and returned to Belagavi with the thought of setting up my own industry. However, I joined a small-scale Hydraulic industry and worked for two years. As you know, Belagavi is famous for the Hydraulic industry like Hydraulic Machinery, Hydraulic Presses, Hydraulic Systems and things like that. I worked as a Production Engineer in a Hydraulic company in Belagavi for two years.
Q: How did you happen to become an entrepreneur?
CC Hondadkatti: Interestingly and fortunately or unfortunately, I don’t know, one of my relatives, Rajamane is settled in Bengaluru. They are good industrialists with their firm being called Rajmane Industries. They happen to be our close relatives, as my sister is married to his sister’s son. We used to buy coolant pumps for hydraulic machinery as the machinery needed coolant pumps as they were in the business of manufacturing coolant pumps. After seeing my performance and efficiency, Rajmane called me to Bengaluru to start a small unit. In fact, they were suppliers to Kirloskar. Earlier Rajmane himself was working as Design Engineer for the Kirloskars. He left and started his own industry and for one more unit, they called me. We both, Rajmane and I started a small unit at Peenya 2nd stage in Bengaluru, supplying routers to the Kirloskars. We supplied them for about two to three years.
Q: If, you were doing well in Belagavi, then why did you shift back to Belagavi?
CC Hondadkatti: My father who was a diabetic had developed gangrene and we took him to Bengaluru and later to Chennai where they suggested a bypass surgery as there was no blood supply. We brought him back to Bengaluru and admitted him to the St Martha’s Hospital where they performed the bypass surgery, but it was not successful. At last, they decided to amputate the leg, which my father came to know. He couldn’t relish it and suffered a fatal cardiac arrest and passed away. Although we were three brothers, my mother insisted that whatever I wanted to do should be done in Belagavi only. So, this way we shifted back to Belagavi.
Q: What did you do after your return to Belagavi?
CC Hondadkatti: In fact, Rajmane had supported me after seeing my mother’s plight and agreed to our return to Belagavi. He suggested supplying castings as they needed them for the manufacturing of pumps and advised me to set up a small unit in Belagavi. Actually, they were interested in manufacturing electric motors. On my return, it took me some time to start the unit in Belagavi as I immediately didn’t start it. Belagavi is famous for its cast iron foundry and also a foundry hub. I knew some of the casting manufacturers and contacted them. Initially, I used to buy castings from them and supply them to Rajmane beginning trading. I also used to supply to NGEF in Hubballi as they were also in need of cast iron. I even started supplying castings to Pune as they needed them for Gym. Like this, I started and did only supplying. I did this for four years as a supplier of castings.
Q: How did you venture into your unit on your own premises?
CC Hondadkatti: In the meantime, I got an opportunity to buy a plot of 10 guntas in the industrial area of Belagavi. Actually, whatever we were able to earn in Bengaluru was lost as it was for a short time. My father had given me Rs 50,000/- and out of which Rs 40,000/- drained away and was left with just Rs 10,000/-. With the help of the same Rs 10,000/- I could buy the 10 guntas of the industrial site. Thanks to my mother’s help I started a business from the industrial site and in the meantime I got married. My father expired in May 1988 and the marriage was fixed for December in the same year. Interestingly, I didn’t have even a single NP at that time! The marriage was done but I didn’t even have money to go for a honeymoon. So, I had to borrow Rs 10,000/- from my mother in order to go on the honeymoon because a huge amount was spent on my father’s medical treatment and surgeries.
Q: What about your association with the Rajmane family and their support for your ventures?
CC Hondadkatti: In the year 1995, I developed the land and started the foundry and developed it slowly. Unlike these days wherein you can see any number of them with a lot of competition, I was lucky enough to do well as the Rajmane family supported me. Even to this day, the Rajmane family continues to support me and I continue to keep getting orders from them. Though they started their own foundry about 10 years back, they still continue to place orders with us. That’s what it’s all about and I am happy to inform you that I am doing well.
Q: What about your entry into public life?
CC Hondadkatti: Even since my college days I had been interested in social service. While studying for my BE, I contested the Class Representative elections. But, unfortunately, I lost in the elections. This tendency continued even after coming out of college. My father was also into social service and he was the Director of a Bank, associated with the Chamber of Commerce and one more organization. I don’t know whether I got the instinct of plunging into public service from my father. My wife is from Bailhongal and they had their own Bailhongal Urban Cooperative Bank and they wanted to start a branch in Belagavi. They approached us and we readily handed over the first floor for them to set up their branch and they made me one of the Directors. So, this way my social service also started and from 1995 till this date I continue to remain a Director of the Bailhongal Cooperative Bank for the last 28 years.
Q: What about the association with the Chamber of Commerce and Industries?
CC Hondadkatti: It was later I also got associated with the Small Scale Industries Association and Belagavi Chamber of Commerce and Industries. In fact, I started as a Director and also got with the Belagavi Foundry Cluster, where also I am a Director. I even became the Director of the Karnataka Small Scale Industries Association (KASSIA), which is a state-level representative body of the small-scale industries in the state. I had been a Director of KASSIA continuously for five annual tenures by getting elected in the elections and later I became the Joint Secretary-Rural. After serving for one year, I left it as in the hierarchical order, next I can only be a President. But after becoming a President, you need to be based in Bengaluru, which in the present circumstances is a horrible job. So, I gave up the idea.
Q: How did the elevation to the post of President of the Belagavi Chamber of Commerce and Industries take place?
CC Hondadkatti: Luckily after serving as a Director of Belagavi Chamber of Commerce and Industries for 10 years and three years as an office bearer, first as a Joint Secretary, then Vice President-1 and Vice President-2, this year I got a chance to become a President. Recently, last month I took charge of the President.
-Manohar Yadavatti
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