Jharkhand keen to attract FDI for development

By Paras Bisht New Delhi, Aug. 8 (ANI): Despite global economic slowdown, India has been doing well on many fronts as a result of which many foreign players are keen to invest in the country. Taking note of the same, the Jharkhand Government is leaving no stone unturned to make the state a top investment destination. The state government is making an all out effort to attract investments and FDI proposals to ride the rail of high economic growth. Recently, the Jharkhand Government organized a curtain raiser ceremony to the Global Investors Summit 2017 to be held in Ranchi next year. The event, which was attended by Jharkhand Chief Minister Ragubar Das and various government representatives, aimed at promoting various initiatives of the state among industry leaders and other corporate honchos across the country. The state invited investments and proposals from industrial heads and pitched for setting up industrial parks. The Chief Minister apprised the audience about the state's potential. "Jharkhand is the richest state in the country, which brings along many opportunities. Every sector, be it-industry, food-processing, mining, auto-mobile, IT or any other sector, each of them has immense opportunity in them. India is doing well despite the global economic slowdown. In terms of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), India's potential has been witnessed well," said Das. "I am sure that in the time to come, there will be more such investments. Everyone here dreams of making the country a superpower. And to make that a reality, Jharkhand will play a major role," he added. During the two-day ceremony, the achievements and challenges in implementing e-Governance in the state and connecting decision-makers with experts and business leaders were discussed. The government also discussed how more vistas of opportunity for partnership building and capacity enhancement for the rural stakeholders can be made. The experts unanimously agreed that Jharkhand presents a huge potential. "I think Jharkhand today is really poised to grow because now we have sincerity in policy making and the bureaucracy, which is all set to provide all assistance for any kind of investments. In terms of weather and atmosphere, Ranchi is no less than Bangalore. I think the BPO and IT-based companies should be located there," said NASSCOM vice-chairman Raman Roy. "With the willingness of the Central Government and the initiatives of the Jharkhand Government, we welcome investments" he added. Jharkhand, which presently ranks third in the World Bank's ease of doing business ranking, has identified and mapped 1.75 lakh acres for various sectors including 200 acres in Ranchi for the IT sector. The state government is also planning to set-up its own film city. The detailed presentation was made by the representatives of the Jharkhand Government who invited private players to invest in the state. Jharkhand's economy has witnessed an impressive growth in the last few years. The state is one of the leading producers of mineral wealth in the country. It is endowed with vast natural resources, especially the different varieties of minerals ranging from iron ore, copper ore, coal, bauxite and uranium besides others. Jharkhand is the first in production of coal, mica, kyanite and copper in India. 33 percent of the country's coal reserves are in Jharkhand. Jharkhand, widely acclaimed as a region with great industrial future, has enormous potential for industrialization and the state provides a solid launching pad for all kinds of investments and industrial development with its large minerals' deposits. (ANI)