Contrary to the claims of Punjab Government, Punjab Congress on Monday argued that during seven years of SAD-BJP regime, as many as 18,770 industrial units have been shut down, and no major new industry has been set up.
Punjab was heading for doomsday on industrial front as per the information received under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, said Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president Partap Singh Bajwa.
“The information got from the State Industries department is shocking and revealing the true picture of industrial scenario in the State,” he said.
He added, the RTI information also revealed that Progressive Punjab Investment Summit held in Mohali, a brainchild of Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal, was nothing “but a prank and a publicity stunt on the people of State”. “The Industry department has failed to supply information regarding the MOUs so signed by State Government with industrial houses who participated in this grand Summit at expenses of State exchequer,” said Bajwa.
Bajwa said that Industry department has informed that since 2007, in Amritsar district, 8,053 small, medium and large industrial units were closed and only four new medium and big industrial units have came up. In Gurdaspur district comprising Pathankot and Batala, 1,864 industrial units were closed and only seven medium and large sector units were set up.
likewise, in Jalandhar district, 1,850 industrial units were shut down between 2007 and 2013, and 18 new industrial units were set up. In Hoshiarpur district, 1,240 units were closed and only three new projects came up, and in Kapurthala, 1,035 industrial units were shut down and only one new unit came up.
“In ludhiana, which is known as the Manchester of India, 2,819 industrial units were shut down and just 11 new units came up, most of them expansion units by existing factories,” said Bajwa, adding that in the home constituency of Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal, five units were shut down and seven new were set up, while in Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal’s home constituency, Muktsar, 768 industries were closed and only one new project is set up.
PPCC chief alleged Sukhbir of “telling white lies to the people regarding so-called investment coming to Punjab which is far from truth”.
Bajwa asked Sukhbir to explain the people of State how much investment he had received from NRIs and industrial houses he claimed to have tapped during NRI Sammelan and Progressive Punjab Investors Summit.