Dharamshala: Prime Minister Narendra Modi was accorded rousing welcome on his arrival at Dharamshala to preside over the inaugural session of Rising Himachal Global Investors’ Meet (GIM) today. He was received at SAI ground by the Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur. Governor Bandaru Dattatreya, Cabinet Ministers, former Chief Minister Shanta Kumar, Member of Parliament Kishan Kapoor welcomed the Prime Minister.
Brand Ambassador for Investors’ Meet and famous Bollywood actress Yami Gautam presented Himachali cap and shawl, a symbol of respect on behalf of the people of the State, to Prime Minister at the venue. Local performers dressed in colourful traditional attire amidst the soothing sound of traditional musical instruments also welcomed the Prime Minister to the ‘Abode of the Gods’.
Prime Minister accompanied by the Governor and Chief Minister went around the exhibition stall and envisaged keen interest in it. Chief Secretary Dr Shrikant Baldi briefed the Prime Minister regarding the exhibition.
The Prime Minister while addressing the inaugural session lauded the efforts of the State Government for organising this mega event. On this occasion, Prime Minister also released the Coffee Table Book ‘Investors Haven Rising Himachal’.
Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur said that the people of the State were fortunate that Himachal Pradesh was always close to the heart of Prime Minister, as it was the second visit of the Prime Minister to the State within a period of one year which shows the love and affection he had towards the State and its people. “Be it your visit to Israel wearing the Himachali cap, or your mention of ‘Chicago to Shimla’ in the recent ‘Howdy Modi’ event in Houston, USA, you have brought Himachal Pradesh to the global arena”, said that Chief Minister.
Jai Ram Thakur said that under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister the nation was changing and so was the economy and image of the country. He said that vibrant Gujarat event organised by Shri Modi as Chief Minister of Gujarat has showed the way to attract investment for the State. He said that inspired by the success of Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh also decided to organise the Meet to woo investment for the State.
GIM to give further impetus to sustainable and inclusive socio-economic development: Jai Ram Thakur
Chief Minister said that the State Government took the historic decision of showcasing State’s immense potential for investment through Rising Himachal- Global Investors’ Meet with the objective of providing further impetus to a sustainable and inclusive socio-economic development in the State.
He said that three international roadshows and six domestic roadshows and conclaves were organised within the state and the State also had meetings with Ambassadors from over 50 countries. He said that state government has set a target of attracting investment of Rs. 85,000 crore and has so far signed 603 MoUs for the investment of Rs 92,439 crore.
Jai Ram Thakur said that Himachal was keen at developing it as the hub of research and development in pharmaceuticals and establish it as bulk drug pharma hub thereby reducing the nation’s import bill. He said that pristine beauty, cleanest air in the country, peaceful environment, cultural diversity and linguistic plurality makes Himachal Pradesh is one of the most visited states in the country.
The state offers visitors a variety of choices such as adventure, wildlife, eco-tourism, heritage, spiritual etc. and the Government was committed to make sustainable tourism as one of the prime engines of growth in the state by establishing it as a leading global sustainable tourism destination.
Jai Ram Thakur said that the State offers attractive incentives under the Industrial Investment Policy to boost industrialisation across the State and make it more attractive and industry-friendly. He said that various policies such as Tourism policy, Film policy, Information Technology policy, AYUSH Policy, Affordable Housing Policy were framed to attract investment in these sectors. He said that the State Government has taken an holistic view to attract tourism in the State.
He said that the State Government has identified key areas such as ensuring good health and wellbeing of all, providing quality education, access to affordable and clean energy, sustainable industrialization, decent economic growth and sustainable cities and towns, to achieve inclusive growth for State’s long-term socio-economic development. He said that the State has immense potential of investment in power, tourism and housing sectors. He urged the investors to make the ‘Dev Bhumi’ as their ‘Karm Bhumi’. He said that the State would soon establish the Investment Promotion Authority in the State to facilitate investments. He said that State Government has also approved a scheme for addressing legacy cases of VAT regime.
Jai Ram Thakur said that the two-day Meet would provide a platform to bring together heads of the state, leaders from the corporate world, senior policymakers, development agencies, heads from institutions of international repute and academia from across the world to further boost socio-economic development in the State.
Industries Minister Bikram Singh said that in order to attract global investors, the State Government has notified Himachal Pradesh Industrial Investment Policy 2019 which aims at promoting Ease of Doing Business by the digitisation of all processes and to promote self-certification, he said.
Ambassador of UAE in India H.E. Ahmed AI Banna said that UAE was the partner country in this Global Investors’ Meet and was committed to make this event a mega hit. He said that bilateral relations between UAE and India were at highest level due to the vision of the leadership of both the countries. UAE was the third largest business partner of India after United States and China, he added.
Director General of Confederation of Indian Industries (National Partner) Chandrajit Banerjee said that Himachal Pradesh has immense potential for emerging as a major industrial hub of the Country. He said that CII was opening a Skill Institute at Dharamshala for skill upgradation of the youth.
Founder and Chairman BRS Ventures Dr B.R.Shetty said that India under the charismatic leadership of Narendra Modi was pointed as the world economic power.
Chairman Maruti Suzuki India Ltd R.C.Bhargava said that the environment for investment in Himachal Pradesh was one of the best in the Country.
Chairman Energy and International Airports GMR Group Srinivas Bommidala said that he had best experience to have invested in the State.
Vice Chairman Bharti Enterprise Ltd. Rakesh Bharti Mittal said that Bharti Enterprise was providing employment to about 15,000 youth in the State and was playing a big role in realizing Prime Minister’s dream of Digital India.
Head Amazon India Amit Agarwal said that two million women entrepreneurs were associated with the Amazon. The Group has created lakhs of jobs besides providing opportunities to the entrepreneurs to market their products.
Managing Director of Adani Agro, Oil and Gas Pranav Adani said that the Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors’ Summit was the brainchild of the Prime Minister, which proved to be a game changer for making Gujarat what it was today. He also termed the Prime Minister as an Architect of New India. He said that Adani Group has their presence in Controlled Atmosphere stores for apples in the State.
A film showcasing immense investment potential within the State was also screened on the occasion.
Governor of Himachal Pradesh Bandaru Dattatreya, Union Minister of State for Tourism Prahlad S. Patel, Union Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs Anurag Thakur, Chief Minister of Sikkim Pawan Kumar Tamang, Cabinet Ministers of the State Government, Vice Chairman NITI Ayog Rajiv Kumar, Health Minister of Bihar Mangal Pandey, MLAs, MPs, Chairmen and Vice Chairmen of various Boards and Corporations, over two thousand delegates from across the globe also attended the inaugural session.
Arvind Sharma is an award winning bi-lingual journalist with more than 20 years of experience.
He has worked with Divya Himachal, Dainik Jagran, Dainik Bhasker, Vir Partap, Ajit and PTI.
In 2010, he was conferred the Himachal Kesri journalism award. He reports on the Tibetan Government in Exile, politics, sports, tourism and other topics. He lives in Dharamshala.
