In order to improve ease of doing business in the State, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has initiated steps to rope in Singapore- based lee Kuan Yew School for Public Policy and have a tripartite agreement with the Government of Odisha to establish a roadmap for rapid industrialisation in the State.
Chairman of CII’s Eastern Region AK Verma disclosed it at a Press meet on Wednesday and added that the meeting is scheduled at the end of the month following which a detailed action plan will be worked out. He said that the Central Government is working on a report card with assessments of each of the States’ performance for ease of doing business.
“As far as we know that this is part of the Central Government’s efforts to put an evaluation system in place and identify the best performing States, I am sure Odisha will fare well in the report card,” he added.
Verma made a brief power point presentation on the economic situation of India and the potential of Odisha to underline the attractiveness of the State for investors. He listed out a lot of initiatives being contemplated by the CII which included engaging with the State Government to set up clusters of ancillary industries, initiatives for skill development and running centers of excellence for the small and medium industries in the State.
CII Odisha State Council Chairman DS Ravindra Raju said, “The CII, which is playing a supportive role in drafting the State Innovation Policy, has mooted a Centre of Excellence on Knowledge Economy set up by the State Government. This will enable the State to position itself as a leading knowledge hub.”
He added that the CII has created a joint forum with the Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) and the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) to facilitate and support identification and empanelment of Smart City projects in Odisha.
Verma also said that the railway and defence sectors present bright opportunities for industrialization of the State and the CII is working on a plan to build a linkage forum for the Railways and the Defence. He identified food processing and agro-based industries as other areas having potential for the State, in addition to the metal, mineral and tourism sectors.