Painting a rosy picture before the investors in Kolkata, the State Government on Friday highlighted some of the areas where heightened attention is going to be in immediate future. The focus includes upgraded infrastructure and eradication of Maoism from the State for paving the way for fast paced growth.
Responding to a question in a Press conference during the road show, Chief Minister Raghubar Das clarified that lWE had become a thing of the past in the State. "People should change their perspective about Jharkhand. Phase of Naxal violence is over. Due to our policy, lots of outlawed have surrendered. Those who are active have nothing to do with the principle. Only some 'goondas' are there in some pockets. Also, there is no dearth of land for industries now," the CM said and substantiated his claims by putting data suggesting that the State has received investments of over Rs 21,000 crore in the last 20 months.
Earlier in his address during the road show -- 'Momentum Jharkhand' -- in the neighbouring West Bengal, the Chief Minister assured the industry people of clarity prevailing within the Government.
"We have now started focusing on a massive uplift of basic infrastructure, including road, rail and power networks to usher in the next stage of reforms and attract more investments. In this way within 10 years, Jharkhand will emerge as the most developed State of the world," said the CM on Friday.
He added that the State was also aggressively pushing for private investments in mineral exploration and looking to rope in private players in the Government Departments and other key entities. The CM, while promising a better environment for investment, both in terms of doing away with red-tapism and security from the Maoists, stated that situation has improved in Jharkhand since his Government came to power.
"Time for permission to set up industries has been reduced to seven days, thanks to the single window system. The Jharkhand Government is directly targeting poverty reduction through judicious and inclusive exploitation of resources. For this, we are becoming increasingly policy driven. We already have the political will and will deliver on our promises," said the Chief Minister and talked about West Bengal, Bihar along with Jharkhand progressing together. The CM, during the road show, also met about 25 honchos of companies one-to-one that included top officials of ITC, Century Ply and Bandhan Bank.
Also, present on the occasion was Chief Secretary Rajbala Verma, who underlined the positives available in the State. "Jharkhand has 33 per cent green cover and I am proud to say that even the investment landscape in the State is as vibrant. New policies and reforms in the State are leading to change in the investment climate across all sectors. Jharkhand also believes in participatory policy making. We are ready with land bank and are truly investment ready," said she.
Industries Secretary Sunil Kumar Barnwal made a detailed presentation on the agenda of the mission. "Ten new policies have been drafted to respond to investors' concerns in the last one year. The New Industrial and Investment Promotion Policy is the key, providing the best incentive nationally. Our efforts have resulted in some big agreements with global corporations such as CISCO, Oracle and HP among many others," said the official.
He also talked about Jharkhand's proximity with the Dedicated Freight Corridor, Amritsar-Kolkata corridor that covers five cities of the State, initiatives taken to connect four major industrial cities through a modern expressway. An MoU was also signed on the occasion with entertainment major Carnival Group.
Sanjeev Puri, COO, ITC ltd said that the FMCG giant was exploring portfolios suitable to its businesses and the opportunities available in the State. "We are very keen on exploiting opportunities in wheat and potato, and wish to engage directly with farmers to boost value addition," he said.
Chandra Shekhar Ghosh of Bandhan Bank that has 20 branches and over 50 credit offices in Jharkhand-mostly in rural areas for microfinance- vowed to open five new bank branches and 20 new credit offices to cover five additional districts of the State. Sajjan Bhajanka, Managing Director of Century Ply talked about ample scope for boosting plywood and cement industry in the State.
The Government has planned next road show in financial capital Mumbai on September 16 and Maiden 'Momentum Jharkhand Global Investors Summit' is planned on 16-17 February, 2017 in Ranchi. So far the Government has held successful roadshows in Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, prior to the grand curtain raiser in New Delhi.