37 agri business deals going nowhere

MP: WHO WILL INVEST?

Due to the casual attitude of the MP government and various associated factors, a mega investor meet in May this year has turned out to be a flop show.

A majority of investors have revoked their decisions to invest in Madhya Pradesh. At the Agri-Business Meet in May as many as 37 investors signed deals with the Madhya Pradesh government in the agri-business sector. Of those, 25 turned hostile to Madhya Pradesh. Apparently investors skip Madhya Pradesh due to cumbersome documentation processes in the state, leading to bureaucratic hurdles later.

A committee that is following up the investment proposals has observed that 25 investors have not shown interest in their projects. The Madhya Pradesh Agro Industries Development Corporation (MP Agro), the nodal agency, which had signed a deal with potential investors, has divided projects into four categories under agro-business.

Under the jatropha (bio-diesel) category six investors had shown interest and made progress in the deal for land acquisition and other activities. These proposals have been discussed in a project implementation and clearance board meeting.

Under the food parks, cluster park and food processing category of the six investors that had inked deals with the state government only Ruchi Soya has shown interest in taking land in Adampur village (near Bhopal). Ruchi has also asked for 300,000 hectares for jatropha plantation.

The committee has said the Guna, Neemuch and Chhatarpur collectors have not said anything on whether non-cultivable land in their districts was available. "Nine investors have not responded to the state governments' correspondence in this regard," said the source.

An investors on condition of anonymity said, "I have to attend a preliminary meeting soon with the department of agriculture officials. I had signed the deal in May but the government has not completed preliminary investigations."