Chandigarh, June 4: Continuing his consultations and engagement with the local industry, Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Saturday promised steps to strengthen the state government’s support to local investors and existing industry to leverage Punjab’s intrinsic strengths.
The Chief Minister made this assurance during the second round of informal consultations with industry to elicit their views and feedback before finalising the operational guidelines of the new industrial policy. The policy, along with the operational guidelines, are expected to become fully functional by July 1, 2018.
Time-bound delivery of regulatory and fiscal clearances was the top priority of his government, which was looking at incorporating the concept of deemed clearances to ensure hassle-free business experience, said the Chief Minister.
Assuring all assistance to industry in setting up their units in state, the Chief Minister welcomed suggestions and directed the Chief Principal Secretary to examine and incorporate the same in the operational guidelines.
Captain Amarinder urged the industry to come forward to complement the state’s aggressive efforts in development and creation of jobs to bring the state back on the track of growth and progress. It was their shared responsibility to re-energise and reinvigorate the state infrastructure through industrial revolution so that Punjab could reclaim its place of glory, he told leading captains of industry, whom he described as Ambassadors of the state.
The Chief Minister expressed satisfaction at the improved investor sentiment in the state, as evident in the interest shown by major industrial houses in investing in Punjab.
On the suggestion of Sunil Kant Munjal of Hero MotoCorp that the government should provide more land to two-wheeler manufacturing units, the Chief Minister directed the department to examine the same.
Kamal Oswal of Nahar Industrial Enterprise Limited suggested full benefits on modernisation of units and enhancement of the land limit for industrial parks from 10 to 25 acres, while Kamna Raj Aggrawal of Engineering Export Promotion Council (North India) raised the issue of extension of benefits to 100% export units on the lines of the manufacturing industry, which was endorsed by Anoop Bector of Mrs Bector’s Food Specialities Ltd.
L D Mittal of Sonalika ITL suggested the extension of incentives and benefits to tractor Agri equipment Manufacturers, where GST on input cost was higher than the GST on finished goods. Suneet Kochhar of Khanna Papers called for increase in freight subsidy for transport of finished goods to Kandla, Mundra and Mumbai ports to attract more investors.
Gautam Kapoor of Raddison Hotel suggested incentives for Hotel industry at par with manufacturing sector.
Sachit Jain of Vardhman Group invited the Chief Minister for the Invest North II to be held in Singapore during August, which Captain Amarinder Singh accepted.
