State will be made investor-friendly: Modi

PATNA: Deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi said on Thursday that the Nitish Kumar-led NDA government would take more concrete steps, including through the 2012-13 budget, to continue to lure investors into the state, and for the purpose, would try its level best to further the cause of making Bihar investor-friendly state.

Modi, who, on the day, had pre-budget interactive meeting with the industry circles, said that the state's record on the investment front was not blank. On the contrary, as many as 59 units approved by the State Investment Promotion Board (SIPB) worth Rs 3,675 crore alone has gone into operation, while 151 other units were at various stages of progress. Besides, 98 food processing units worth Rs 1,609 crore project cost has also been approved, and 50 units has already been paid Rs 120 crore as grant, with Rs 5 crore as subsidy cap for each unit.

Moreover, till 2005, the Bihar Industrial Area Authority (BIADA) had given land to 1,120 units, 2,000 new units had been given land, beginning 2005-06. On the other hand, while 1,035 units had gone in operation, 308 others were at various stages of progress. Incidentally, the state would be producing 5,000 MT of sugar this year, and the high water mark of the state's sugar industry was that its cane crushing capacity had increased from the earlier mark of 37,200 metric tonnes per day to 68,000 metric tonnes per day.

"The industrial revival of the state has begun to look up," Modi said, adding that two sugar units would go into production this year, and four others were at various stages of modernization. He added that the state industry department lobbied with the sugar industry circles to lure investment in this sector, but it did not yield results. "In the situation, we have decided to give land of nine other sugar mills to investors to open and start any industry," Modi also said.

During his pre-budget interaction with the industry circles, Modi was accompanied by industry minister Renu Kushwaha and industries development commissioner (IDC) C K Mishra, while among the industry representatives who presented their expectations from the state's 2012-13 budget were CII representative Satyajit Singh, Bihar Industries Association (BIA) representative K P S Kesri, Bihar Chamber of Commerce (BCC) representatives O P Sah and P K Agarwal, as well as representatives of iron and steel, small scale units and plastic industry.

Source: Times of India
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-01-21/patna/30650651_1_...
Their demands and suggestions mainly concerned taxation reforms, simplification of procedures related to BIADA and power sector. "Whatever needs to be done through the budget we will do it," Modi said. On the occasion, Mishra announced that land has been identified at Fatuha to shift plastic industry from Patna City to prevent environmental problems being caused in the area.

Modi also said that the state government has decided to conduct sample survey of the state's industries small, medium and big industries, as well as the sick and such other units -- through the statistical department in a format as used by the National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO).