Design Sector Needs to be More Democratic, says Assembly Speaker

KOCHI:
Design sector should become more democratic in its approach by considering the needs of the people on the ground as they are the primary consumers, said Speaker, Kerala Legislative Assembly, P. Sreeramakrishnan.

He was inaugurating the three-day Kochi Design Week (KDW), India’s largest design conclave, at Bolgatty Island here today.

The summit, organised by the Electronics and IT Department of Kerala Government in association with bodies such as World Design Organisation (WDO) and Interaction Design Association (IxDA), brings together experts from across the world to discuss global trends in design and architecture, and position Kerala as an international hub for design companies.

In this era, design is an indispensable component in every domain rather than a mere fabric factor, Sreeramakrishnan said. “We are articulating a form that people can understand. When they understand it more, they will also appreciate it vastly,” he said.

Presiding over the inaugural session, S D Shibulal, Chairman, High Power IT Committee (HPIC) and Co-Founder and Former CEO of Infosys, said, “We live in a world of design innovation. In Kerala, we have tremendous talent in this field, and we should look for more investments by showcasing the strength of the state.”

“Events like #Future, the next edition of which will be held in April 2020, and KDW are the best ways to showcase us as a marketplace and knowledge industry hub,” Shibulal added.

Welcoming the gathering, M Sivasankar, IT Secretary, Kerala, said the KDW is trying to create an ecosystem where world’s best designs flow to the platform. “Creative design has an imporatant role now. The government would like to look into events like these as a platform where we do a lot of introspection. As a result, we can assess the way and chalk out the way forward, ” he said.

Dr Saji Gopinath, CEO, Kerala Startup Mission, said we live in a world of convergence and this sort of convergence is happening in multiple fields. Sasi. P.M, CEO, IT Parks, Kerala; Arun Balachandran, Chief Minister’s Fellow, IT; and V. Sunil Kumar, Founder and Managing Director, Asset Homes, also spoke.

The mega event witnesses the convergence of design professionals from India and abroad, heads of various companies, architects, interior designers, thought leaders, policymakers and government officials, besides the general public.