State gets a ticket to Davos
Maharashtra, after a gap of nearly 12 years, will now be heard at the prestigious World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
By Girish Kuber, TNN |
NAGPUR: Maharashtra, after a gap of nearly 12 years, will now be heard at the prestigious World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
The Forum has invited state chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh for the convention to be held in January ’07. The Mecca of business and economics, Davos throws up an opportunity to all those who matter to rub shoulders with the big daddies of business and politics.
“It’s certainly a proud moment for the state, especially after the prolonged wait,” Mr Deshmukh told ET. The last time the state made a presentation at Davos was in 1994. For the past few years, Maharashtra — once the leader — was in a state of hibernation and a mute witness to investment opportunities passing by.
Things have begun to look brighter in the last few months. And if Klaus Schwab, chairman of the World Economic Forum is to be believed, this western state has even surpassed Russia in attracting foreign direct investment. The state, in the current year, has bagged projects entailing an investment of $8.5 billion, about Rs 35,000 crore.
Mr Schwab is understood to have made the comment at the recent India Economic Forum in Delhi. VK Jairath, the state industry secretary, a suave and a no-nonsense official, argues the state’s case forcefully. “Unlike other states, our MoUs are being realised. Many projects we signed in the recent past are at various stages of completion,” he told ET.
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According to him, M&M’s Logan will roll out in the first quarter of next year, while Bosch and Mico have placed plant orders. LG has started its cell phone manufacturing near Pune, while General Motors recently conducted the ground breaking ceremony. Volkswagen will be handed over land soon. In this year alone the state has attracted over Rs 35,000 crore of investment. “This is by far the largest among the states,” he said.
He gave a dossier detailing the industries and their investment plans. Some of the big projects for which MoUs are already signed are: Mahindra and Mahindra (Nashik) - Rs 1,250 crore; LG (Ranjangaon, Pune) - Rs 535 crore; Tech Mahindra (Hinjewadi, Pune) - Rs 300 crore; Mico (Nashik) - Rs 700 crore; Satyam Computer (Nagpur) - Rs 100 crore; TCS (Hinjewadi, Pune) - Rs 500 crore; GM (Pune) - Rs 257 crore; Boeing (Nagpur) - Rs 500 crore; Bajaj Auto (Chakan, Pune) - Rs 2,000 crore; Ballarpur Ind (Indapur, Pune) - Rs 1,200 crore, Volkswagen - Rs 2,050 crore; and Gulf Finance House (Navi Mumbai) - Rs 9,250 crore.
“We don’t get into agreement unless fully sure of the company. We double check on their commitment and the capability,” the industry secretary said. He claimed that the state had to turn off or put on hold many proposals since they lacked credibility.
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