Make in Odisha: Over 40% project intents translate into commitments

The second edition of Make in Odisha, the state's biennial showpiece investment summit, has seen the conversion of a large chunk of investment intents into firm commitments. 

In a span of less than two months of hosting the conclave, more than 40 per cent of the investments by volume of projects announced have converted into concrete proposals. Make in Odisha 2018, held between November 11 and 15, 2018, had drawn investment proposals valued at Rs 4.19 trillion across 15 sectors, eclipsing the inaugural event of 2016 when the state attracted Rs 2.03 trillion.

“Of the promised 183 investment projects, 75-80 have got converted into firm commitments. We expect to provide single-window approvals to about 60 proposals by February 15,” said a senior Odisha government official.

Odisha has reaffirmed its position among investors in conversion of project intents into committed investments -- a parameter where it has consistently scored over other investor-friendly destinations. An overhauled Industrial Policy Resolution (IPR), 2015 coupled with a suite of business friendly reforms, such as the Government of Odisha Single-Window Investor Facilitation & Tracking (GO-SWIFT) portal has helped speed up approvals for investment projects.

Within a year of its launch, GO-SWIFT has received 500 proposals. The one-stop portal that tracks the complete life cycle of an investment, received its 500th proposal recently from a Gurugram-based sanitary products manufacturer. The unnamed company has proposed to invest Rs 350 crore to set up a manufacturing unit for glass containers at Cuttack with an annual capacity of 130,000 tonnes. The project has potential to generate direct and indirect employment for 1,200 people.

“It is encouraging to note that within a short span of one year, GO-SWIFT has received the 500th investment proposal. Due to significant ease of application and expeditious approval process, there has been a considerable increase in the number of investors wanting to set up their units in Odisha. The Make in Odisha conclave 2018 has given further impetus to the flow of investment proposals. We will continue to raise the bar for ease of doing business and are focused on speedy implementation of projects on ground,” Sanjeev Chopra, principal secretary (industries) had said previously.

A first-of-its-kind in the country, GO-SWIFT provides information on business reforms and policy initiatives. The investor dashboard on the portal allows users to track the real-time status of their application and get alerts via SMS and email. Another important feature is its Query Management System that lets users raise queries within a week of their submission. GO-SWIFT also has a department dashboard for senior government officials to use and track the industrial units in the state. 

Sixty four per cent of the 183 projects pledged during Make in Odisha 2018 are in the non-mineral, greenfield category. These projects have the potential to generate employment opportunities for 230,000 people. A sectoral break-up of the investment intents drawn in the non-metals & minerals segment establishes that fertilisers, refinery & petrochemicals tops with 20 per cent share. This is followed by food processing, textiles & apparel and logistics & infrastructure with share of 16.4 per cent, 9.3 per cent and 6.55 per cent respectively. Haldia Petrochemicals emerged as the biggest greenfield investor in this edition of Make in Odisha, pledging Rs 70,000 crore on fertilizer, refinery, petrochemicals, chemicals and plastics. In the same sectors, a Taiwan-based investor has lined up Rs 43,000 crore.