In the backdrop of Uttar Pradesh becoming the country’s second largest economy, UP finance minister Suresh Khanna claimed improved law and order, speedy redress and conducive policies helped to make the state as the preferred investment destination in India.
Interacting with industry leaders in Lucknow recently, Khanna said UP replaced Tamil Nadu by clocking a Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) of 9.2 percent. Now UP is secondly only to Maharashtra, which topped the tally by contributing 15.7 percent to the national GDP.
Calling upon entrepreneurs to invest in UP, he said the government is developing Bundelkhand Industrial Development Authority (BIDA) on the lines of Noida to spur industrial growth in the region even as he emphasised the state’s leadership position in the production of food grains, sugarcane and milk.
He noted while the electricity demand hovered around 13,000-14,000 MW in 2017, it has already overshot 30,000 MW in UP today, which indicated massive industrialisation. He nudged industrialists to invest in the renewable energy sector.
Meanwhile, UP industrial development minister Nand Gopal Gupta ‘Nandi’ said owing to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s initiatives, the state is now reckoned for mega events like Global Investors Summit and MotoGP, which had pitch-forked the state on the international map.
“This state has abundant natural resources, manpower and world class infrastructure for industry to prosper. UP is known as the Express Pradesh, as it is home to almost 40 percent of the total expressways in India,” he noted.
UP Infrastructure & Industrial Development Commissioner (IIDC) Manoj Kumar Singh said the aim of the workshop was to collect feedback on the government policies.
Stressing the focus on attracting foreign direct investment (FDI), he said UP had promulgated a dedicated policy for FDI and Fortune 500 companies with the state ranked 11th in terms of FDI. “The policy aims to create better facilities and environment for the foreign direct investors and Fortune 500 companies, who bring in an investment of Rs 100 crore or more.”
Stating that UP land prices are prohibitive due to the land being fertile, which often inhibited industrialisation, the IIDC said to overcome the factor, the government has decided to give 75 percent subsidy on land cost, capital subsidy of 25 percent payable in 7 years and 100 percent State GST (SGST) reimbursement.
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Invest UP CEO Abhishek Prakash said UP became a preferred investment destination due to a large network of expressways, domestic and international airports, humongous land bank and investment friendly policies.