Bengaluru, Pitching for investments in diverse sectors in the hill state, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Wednesday urged companies based in Karnataka to extend their operations to the northern region.
“I would like Karnataka-based companies in IT, electronics, automotive, apparel, biotech, renewable energy and manufacturing to invest in our state and avail of the various benefits offered to investors,” said Thakur at a roadshow on the global investors’ meet in his home state at Shimla on June 10-11.
Addressing captains of industry at an interactive session, organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) ahead of the ‘Rising Himachal Global Investors Meet’ in June, Thakur urged the tourism industry to invest in the picturesque Himalayan state, which is rich in flora and fauna.
“Since our government came to power in December 2017, we have put effort to improve the ease of doing business, as evident from higher ranking for our state by the Union government,” said Thakur.
The federal government has recently ranked Himachal top among the fast movers category in ease of doing reforms.
The Baddi-Nalagarh industrial belt has emerged as a key manufacturing hub for diverse sectors and the region is known to be Asia’s largest bulk drug manufacturing area.
“The global investors’ meet will highlight our hill state as a place for investment and opportunities and to realise its potentiality. Your participation in the summit and its sectoral sessions will generate ideas for the development of the state,” said Thakur.
Highlighting the tourism potential in the state, the BJP chief minister said as pure air and bio-diversity were the state’s biggest assets, his government would strive to make Himachal a global sustainable tourism destination in the world.
“With road, rail and air connectivity under Udan across the state, Himachal is no longer at the periphery but at the centre of a vibrant and surging economy,” said Thakur.
The state government is gearing up to attract investors across sectors like logistics and warehousing, aroma, food processing, biotechnology, automobiles and electric vehicles.
Himachal Industries Minister Bikram Singh said 337 reforms were taken under the Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP) to jump 28.37 per cent with 94.13 per cent score.
Himachal Additional Chief Secretary (Industries) Manoj Kumar said the state had 1,600 acres of land bank for industries like bulk drugs pharma park and biotechnology park in Solan, textile park in Una and industrial township in Kangra and Una.
The global investors’ meet in June will showcase the state’s capabilities and readiness to take on business challenges. It will guide the state to wider avenues of business possibilities by implementing technology, policies, practices and strategic investments.
The meet will focus on tourism, electronics, education, skill development, Ayurveda, manufacturing, infrastructure and logistics, power and renewable energy, agro business, pharmaceuticals and food processing.
CII Karnataka Chairman N. Muthukumar said Himachal had emerged as one of the progressive states in the country and adjudged recently the best in sustainable development goals by the United Nations.
