COUNCIL FOR FAIR BUSINESS PRACTICES I compliment the organizers of the Council for Fair Business Practices for organizing the awareness among the public and those in business to follow ethical standards when dealing with each other. I say each other, because like the manufacturer or the service provider who invests a lot to develop a business to cater to the needs of the customers and is now aware that unless they stick to fair trade practices, they will soon end up winding up their business, the customer must also reciprocate by settling the bills on demand or as per agreement. Fair trade practices normally hinge around pricing and quality of the product. A perfect combination of both is what the customer is looking for. The days of the seller's market is fast disappearing if not gone in many sectors but buyers also need to respond to the needs of the trade by paying the bills on time, if not they suffer the hidden cost of interest and probably many more additions. The popular image of the manufacturer is that he is a professional whose job is to create and maintain demand for something. This is a narrow view and as every marketing manager knows there are several important and marketing tasks. When we say Fair Trade Practice it encompasses one or more of these marketing tasks. Fair trade practices may not be a new concept but the need to practice it has to be renewed periodically since the new generation of owners may have a different idea of profit maximization. That is why, we in Rotary, emphasise ethical trade practices and encourage every business owner to display a board in their room which will constantly remind them that a product which they make which now enjoys a full demand state or overfull demand state can very easily slip backwards into a faltering demand state and go into the no demand state and eventually become a no demand state. We have seen business empires slide rapidly since somewhere in the minds of the owners the need to maximize profits was overshadowing the ethical way to do business which alone can sustain an industry for decades or even over a century. Fair trade practice, rather than a singular effort to project an ethical image, is a complex game with many scripts. I must compliment and appreciate the efforts put in by the chairperson Ms Kalpana Munshi for bringing an awareness about the fair trade practice which 1am sure will make a difference in the society. I wish every success.