Chennai-Visakhapatnam Industrial Corridor may get extended to Balasore

27 February 2017

Odisha government’s proposal to extend Chennai-Visakhapatnam Industrial Corridor up to Balasore district is likely to get Centre’s nod soon, said state industry minister Debi Prasad Mishra.

“Initial discussions have already started with the centre in this regard. The extension will further boost to the industrial process in the state,” said Mishra at ‘Advantage Odisha’, a session organised by Confederation of Indian Industry, Odisha chapter here on Saturday.

Claiming that Odisha is firmly on course to become the number one state in manufacturing in India, Mishra said, “Our Vision Document 2025 envisages that Odisha will become the manufacturing hub of South East Asia. While the Government of India’s targeted growth in manufacturing is 25%, Odisha’s bar is higher at 27%.”

The minister said, the state is expecting to get at least Rs one lakh crore investment before the next Make in Odisha conclave. “The approval period has been reduced from 160 days to 20 days. The single window has received 63 applications/proposals out of which 60 have been cleared within an average time period of 20 days.”

Industry secretary Sanjiv Chopra stressed on the need for reducing cost of doing business. “The industries department has launched mobile applications – Invest Odisha – for tracking the applications, incentives and policies. It is also working on a plan to remove physical contact between the government and the people to improve ease of doing business,” Chopra said.

Appreciating the initiatives of Odisha government to attract investments T V Narendran, chairman of CII eastern region and managing director of Tata Steel Ltd said, “Odisha has now emerged as a state to reckon with. Odisha has traditional advantage of being connected to South Asian Countries. This state also has inviolable educational infrastructure, creating good employable skilled labour for upcoming industries.”

The newly elected chairman of CII Odisha State Council and CMD of Nalco pledged to work shoulder to shoulder with all stakeholders to make sure the Odisha Government’s Vision 2025 becomes a ‘glorious reality’. “We have three jobs at hand – making Odisha the manufacturing hub in South Asia, attracting investments worth 2.5 lakh Crore Investment by 2025 and substantially enhancing people’s purchasing power in the State,” Chand said.

Source – TOI