Our Correspondent
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has assured industry that the state government will give clearances to prospective investors within 15 days, promising greater ease of doing business at the two-day Progressive Punjab Investors’ Summit.
The Punjab government has introduced self-certification for industries to do away with “Inspector Raj”.
Mann told industry representatives they wouldn’t hear the words like “come tomorrow” or face legal hassles in getting no-objection certificates, change of land use documents, and pollution and forest clearances. “We will give you all the clearances within 15 days,” he said. “If you plan to set up two plants, we will give you permission for three. You give employment to our youth.”
The amount that the first day of this year’s summit fetched is unclear. The chief minister said, “This summit will not be about MoUs. It will be about sharing knowledge and learning. We will provide ease of doing business.” Last year, the fourth edition of the event attracted investments worth 8,200 crore, according to the summit’s website.
Mann said the government would create 20 industrial clusters and 15 industrial parks in rural areas. “We want investors to build their plants in the rural regions so that our youth get employment and there is no migration.”
The summit, which has around 3,000 attendees from industry, will host nine sessions on areas such as agri-food processing, textiles, healthcare, education, tourism, IT and start-ups.
Leaders of several businesses, including Medanta Group, M&M, RJ Group, Godrej Consumer Products and Bharti Airtel, addressed the event.
Rajesh Jejurikar, executive director, M&M, said, “We have four manufacturing units in Punjab. We are investing in the fifth that is under construction. We are also investing in a new product in the state, besides on CSR that has impacted 50,000 people.”
Nisaba Godrej, executive chairman, Godrej Consumer Products, said it is setting up a cattle feed factory and other businesses as it plans to expand in Punjab. Rakesh Bharti Mittal, vice chairman of Bharti Airtel, said, “Punjab has one of the best work environments. Till date, we have invested Rs 50,000 crore in the state and employed 50,000 people.”
Dr Naresh Trehan, chairman of the Medanta Group, said, “We are now coming to Punjab shortly. We have family connections in Patti. Punjabis are very beautiful people. The US gave me everything professionally but there people don’t speak Punjabi. We wish to establish ourselves in Punjab as soon as possible.”
Rajesh J, executive director of the Mahendra and Mahendra, said, “We have invested in Punjab for decades. We have grown five times since 2007. We have four manufacturing units in Punjab. We are investing in the fifth which is under construction. We are also investing in a new product in the state. We have invested in CSR and one such has impacted 50,000 people.”
Simon George, president of Cargil (India), said, “Connecting farmers with market, we are focused on agri food. We are in India for the past 35 years. We have 13 manufacturing locations in the country. We made first investment in Punjab in 2016 and had an unmatched positive experience. We are in the process of doubling our investment in Punjab in the next two years.”
Ravi Kant Jaipuria, Chairman, RJ Group, specialising in food and beverage, said,”We have two large plants in Punjab — Phillaur and Pathankot. We are in the process of doubling our product in Pathankot. Punjab is now ready for investment. The youth here is willing to work and the government is providing conducive work environment.”
Nisaba Godrej, Executive Chairman, Godrej Consumer Products, said, “We are setting up a cattle feed factory and more businesses. We plan to expand our businesses in Punjab shortly.”
Rakesh Bharti Mittal, vice chairman of Bharti Airtel, said, “Punjab has one of the best work environments in the world. Till date, we have invested Rs 50,000 crore in Punjab employing 50,000 people.”