Driving Naari Programme launched in Chandigarh
The two-day summit included technical sessions on various sectors and yielded useful investor insights from country sessions
Mohali
Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Friday assured investors that the state is ready to extend full support to the industry and whatever changes the industry needs in the current industrial policy, his government is ready to incorporate it.Addressing a galaxy of industry and business leaders at the valedictory session of the Progressive Punjab Investors Summit (PPIS) 2019, the Chief Minister made it clear that his government was prepared to change its decades-old policies to transform the state from an agricultural to an industrial economy.
Underlining the need for a much-needed change to prevent children from going out in search of greener pastures, Captain Amarinder declared, “We cannot continue with policies that are 50 years old. We have to change if we want to remain in the game.” It was imperative to take Punjab in the direction of a progressive future for the sake of the next generation, he asserted, expressing concern over the brain drain from the state.Speaking to the audience “man to man, a Punjabi to a Punjabi, and a Punjabi to those who will be Punjabis soon”, the Chief Minister said, “I’ll give you what you want… tell me what’s needed, I’ll do everything that is needed (for facilitating the industry).”
“I hope you go from here convinced that we are committed to your welfare. We will give you security. We will ensure peace for you,” he said, pointing out that Punjab offered a conducive environment for industrial development, with a productive workforce “whose output is as good as anywhere in the world…in fact better.”
There are no labour problems in Punjab, no strikes, he added, reaching out to the honchos of industry and business groups.
His government, said Captain Amarinder, was committed to the promotion of industry and investment and had already taken several measures on this count.
These included facilitation of access to finance for MSMEs through an MoU with HDFC Bank, which had completed disbursement of loans worth Rs 1,100 crore till yesterday, approval to Punjab Right to Business Ordinance and creation of a state Ground Water Authority, said the Chief Minister, amid applause.
What honchos said
MSMEs need to focus on value-addition. Once you are in value-added manufacturing such as garmenting, the industry can get much high returns with a better strategy and efficiency. — Kamal Oswal, Vice-Chairman and MD, Nahar Industrial Enterprises Limited
If the Punjab’s MSMEs want to prosper, they need to have a knitwear mission. To assist the sector, we plan to set up a centre of excellence in Ludhiana if the government gives us some space. — HKL Maggu, Chairman, Apparel Export Promotion
Punjab was already witnessing medical tourism from Central Asian nations, US, UK-based NRIs and from adjoining states such as Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. This was due to the strong presence of a healthcare delivery ecosystem. — Dr KK Talwar, Padma Bhushan Awardee
The state has everything that is vital for the growth of the industry. This is evident from the fact that we have built the world’s largest tractor manufacturing facility at a single location at Hoshiarpur which has the capacity to manufacture 3 lakh tractors per annum. — AS Mittal, Vice-Chairman, Sonalika Group
Emaar is coming with real-estate projects spread over 700 acres in Punjab. The fact that the government is very supportive has attracted the group. — Ravneet Gill, Business Head, EMAAR India
