Exclusive Interview with U’khand Chief Minister
By Arun Pratap Singh
Uttarakhand will host its second Global Investors’ Summit in the state. The two-day Destination Uttarakhand – Global Investors’ Summit will be held on 8 and 9 December at the Forest Research Institute (FRI) Campus in Dehradun and will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. For this, preparations are in full swing, at present, and are being closely monitored by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami. Besides this, Dhami is also making every effort to attract the maximum possible investment in the state through this global summit. The first such summit was held at the Rajeev Gandhi International Cricket Stadium on 7 and 8 October in 2018. However, despite the huge hype that was created, the majority of investment MoUs had then failed to actualise into reality. This time, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has worked really hard to not only raise the target of investment to Rs 2.5 lakh crores, but has also taken care not to repeat the mistakes of the past. He himself participated in road shows in India and abroad and held meetings with the industrial houses in this respect. Garhwal Post spoke exclusively to Chief Minister Dhami regarding the upcoming summit and the possibilities regarding investment in the state. Some excerpts:
How well prepared is Uttarakhand Government to host the Global Investors’ Summit?
This time, the government has made ground preparations well before the Summit. After studying deeply why investors should come to our state, concrete arrangements have been made so that they do not face any difficulty. We are inviting investors with a goal in mind and how to achieve it. As part of the preparations, several programmes and Investors’ rallies have been held in India and abroad, including London and Birmingham in UK, and Dubai and Abu Dhabi in UAE, as well as several places in India including Mumbai, Ahmedabad and the NCR. We are confident about the success of the Summit.
What is the target of investment and do you think that it will materialise?
We have kept a target of Rs 2.5 lakh crores for the upcoming Summit. A substantial part of this target is already achieved to a great extent through the MoUs that have been signed, so far, between potential investors and the Uttarakhand Government. This effort to sign pre-summit MoUs is still underway till the last moment. We also hosted an energy conclave to attract more investment in the energy sector.
With Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurating the Summit, what outcomes do you expect?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has an emotional and spiritual attachment with Uttarakhand. He has been the guiding force behind the development that is currently being seen in Uttarakhand. The support that he has lent to the state in its infrastructure projects like All Weather Roads, the under-construction Dehradun-Delhi Expressway, the Rishikesh-Karnaprayag Railway Project, many other highway and road projects and the Ropeways project, air connectivity projects and the Manaskhand Link Project will pave the way for huge investment in many sectors.
Due to the special support of the Centre to the state under the guidance of PM Modi, central projects worth more than Rs 1 Lakh Crores are underway in Uttarakhand. Prime Minister Modi will inaugurate the Uttarakhand Global Investor Meet. His arrival on 8 December in Dehradun is bound to create excitement and confidence among investors. Everyone knows that PM Modi has a spiritual attachment with Uttarakhand and that he will fully support the state in many ways to take it on a new path of development.
What are the unique advantages that Uttarakhand has vis-à-vis other states for potential investors?
Under the leadership of the Prime Minister, the country is constantly establishing new records. By 2025, we will be a USD 5 trillion economy. The double engine government of Uttarakhand is working under the NaMo vision to create a new state. Under this, we are committed to a balance between economy and ecology. A vision document, with inputs from the public, for turning Uttarakhand into a model state is being developed. We are turning it into an attractive destination for employment, trade and investment. We are fully committed to developing this with complete balance. Uttarakhand has a peaceful law and order situation and labour unrest is almost unheard of. Overall, the environment is very conducive to attracting huge investment. We have also identified an adequate land bank for potential investors and many things to offer to them. The power tariff is cheaper here as compared to other states.
What makes you confident about the success of this Global Investors’ Summit, whereas the first one did not yield the desired results?
We have learnt from past experience. We are still learning from the experiences that we had at the time of the first summit. We have established a Single Window System to clear the projects and grant all necessary sanctions at one go. As many as 27 policies including those related to labour laws have been framed and many existing policies have been improved to make them more simple and effective. Many rules and regulations as well as procedures have been simplified by us. We have also taken advantage of the MoUs signed last time and spoken to the potential investors. We have also spoken to the already existing entrepreneurs in Uttarakhand to see if they are interested in expansion or setting up new units and will be giving them concessions as well.
In addition, we are also making all out efforts towards grounding of each and every investment proposal that has been received and signed.
You and your cabinet colleagues have held several Investor rallies in the country and abroad in preparation for the Summit. Which sectors are you focussing more upon as far as investment is concerned?
We are hoping to get big investment in hydropower, solar and wind energy, green energy in the power sector. In the tourism sector, we are looking at the possibility of cruises, house boats, adventure tourism in reservoirs and lakes. Wellness, Health, Medical Education and Education are other key sectors for Uttarakhand. Uttarakhand is emerging as a major education hub. fruit processing, food processing, pharmaceutical, herbal sectors are other key areas.
We conducted road shows in the country and abroad for the Global Investors’ Meet. There is a lot of enthusiasm among business persons regarding investment in Uttarakhand. We have also taken policy suggestions from them and simplified our rules. We have received a very good response from Dubai, Abu Dhabi, London, etc. Many top companies of India which can be described as world class companies are already present in Uttarakhand. Companies like Tata, Birla, Hero, Ashok Leyland, Mahindra and Brittania, etc., are manufacturing their excellent products here. In addition, lifesaving medicines, vaccines and heart valves are being manufactured here. Many Ayurvedic companies like Patanjali, Himalaya Wellness, Dabur, Baidyanath, Hamdard are making their products in the state from Himalayan herbs.
Tourism has been a key focus sector in Uttarakhand despite the fact that it has remained mostly limited to pilgrimage and has been seasonal. In addition, natural disasters have the deterred many tourists. There has also been criticism from many regarding the dangers and, in particular, the environmental impact of unbridled tourism activities. What do you have to say about it?
We understand that it is important to strike a balance with environmental concerns. Earlier, the tourism was a seasonal activity in Uttarakhand. There used to be tourism here for six months and now pilgrimage tourism has started happening throughout the year. All-weather roads have been built, due to excellent air connectivity and excellent rail system, the distance from NCR to Uttarakhand will soon be reduced to under three hours which will attract more tourists and pilgrims. There has been an unprecedented boom in the pilgrimage tourism business, home stays are being built and big hotels projects are also coming up in large numbers. Tourism does not mean that we neglect local society or harm the environment. Uttarakhand is constantly attracting more tourists. They increase the income of both the locals and the state. We would definitely want those who come from outside the state to understand that they have to contribute to the protection of the environment.
