Industry captains have heaped wholesome praise on Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for bringing a turnaround in the state’s environment within a year as they committed to investments of over Rs 4.28 lakh crore over the next three years on the first day of the Investors Summit here.
A visibly-elated Chief Minister Adityanath announced at the inaugural session of the two-day summit that more than 1,045 MoUs had been signed with a total amount which was almost equal to the state’s budget for 2018-19. In his address, he said that he was happy that the investors had taken note of the transformational changes in the state and were willing to partner the growth story that had been set rolling by the state government in the past 11 months. He also assured the investors that his government had taken their safety and security on top priority and had done a lot to turnaround the law and order situation.
Chief Minister Adityanath assured that all the MoUs that have been signed would be followed up seriously and it would be ensured that the facilities offered to them were adhered to in full and that they have no problems in setting up industries in the state. He also said that a cell has set up to follow up on the investment promises and that he would personally monitor them on a case to case basis.
In his address, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that his government will establish a Rs 20,000-crore defence industrial production corridor in Bundelkhand—a region divided between Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh—that will generate 250,000 jobs and bring development to the whole region. Stressing that Uttar Pradesh had a vast potential for development but needed policy, planning, and performance, he lauded the efforts of Chief Minister Adityanath for setting the state on the path to give a “super hit” performance.
Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani, too, praised the Chief Minister whom he called him a “karma yogi”, while many others like Adani Group chief Gautam Adani, Tata Sons chairman N. Chandrashekharan, Apollo Hospitals Vice Chairperson Shobana Kamineni, Essel Group chairman Subhash Chandra, Mahindra and Mahindra chairman Anand Mahindra also complimented him for “setting things right enough” to set pace for more investments in the state.
Adani announced that his company would invest more than Rs 35,000 crore for projects, including a 1,000 MW solar plant, developing a storage capacity of 6 lakh tonnes, multi-model logistics parks, 5,000 MW solar parks, world class food and agri-complexes and a world class multi-disciplinary university and skill development center in Noida.
Kumarmangalam Birla of the Aditya Birla Group said UP was set for its front ranking place in the nation with the “hallmark leadership style of Yogi”. “I am impressed by the inexhaustible energy of the Chief Minister… am very bullish about the prospects of UP under him,” he said while committing Rs 25,000 crore for the state in the next five years.
Mahindra reminisced about his mother’s early life in Allahabad and then as a history teacher at IT College in Lucknow, saying his visit was like a “home coming”.
He also thanked the Chief Minister for his promising ideas and announced that if the spirit went on course, in future, too, he would be setting up an electric vehicle manufacturing unit in the state. Mahindra also announced that its flagship Club Mahindra would set up a 200-bed time share unit in Varanasi circuit, while Subhash Chandra also assured all help and support in Adityanath’s initiative to make UP a front-ranking state of the country. Chandrashekharan also announced that TCS would not wrap up its Lucknow operations, as was the case earlier, but would now also set up a 30,000 people new campus of the TCS in the state. “TCS will continue to be in Lucknow and also strengthen its presence elsewhere in the state,” he said, adding that an IT centre would be set up in Varanasi, Prime Minister Modi’s parliamentary constituency. Kamineni, who is also industry lobby CII’s president, said that she had not long ago brought with her a delegation of 60 top CEOs and announced that the Apollo Hospital was working with Cisco on an important project in Varanasi.
‘Jio will invest Rs 10,000 crore in three years’
Reliance Jio will invest another Rs 10,000 crore in Uttar Pradesh over the next three years, Reliance Industries Limited chairman Mukesh Ambani said here.
“Today, I am happy to inform this audience that Jio is one of the largest investors in Uttar Pradesh with investments of over Rs 20,000 crore. Jio is providing the highest quality data at the lowest price in the world to over 2 crore citizens of Uttar Pradesh,” Ambani said while addressing the Uttar Pradesh Investors’ Summit 2018.
“I have come to Lucknow to assure the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister that Jio’s Digital Revolution is here to make the maximum contribution to UP’s development revolution,” he added. While talking about affordable handsets, JioPhone, Ambani said: “Jio will make available over two crore JioPhones in UP within the next two months on a priority basis.” He said that Jio has already created over 40,000 direct and indirect jobs in the state.