Mineral-rich states Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh have caught the fancy of investors, attracting proposals worth Rs 8.06 lakh crore last year from India Inc's nation-wide investment plans of Rs 17.40 lakh crore.
Orissa was the top choice of investors and attracted Rs 3.16 lakh crore, followed by Chhattisgarh - Rs 2.86 crore and Madhya Pradesh, Rs 2.04 lakh crore, as per the data compiled by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP).
In a power deficit country, electrical equipment emerged as the number one choice of investors.
With proposals worth Rs 9.29 lakh crore, the sector accounted for 54% of the total investment plans filed with the government.
Two other favourite sectors with corporate India were metallurgy, with plans equivalent of Rs 3.92 lakh crore and cement-gypsum at Rs 94,410 crore.
Experts said the investment bias has been towards exploitation of natural resources.
"In these states [Orissa, Chhattisgarh and MP], electricity plants have been set up. Also, these are mineral rich states ... Investors may want to set up their base and take advantage of the resources," Crisil Principal Economist DK Joshi said.
A similar view was expressed by a senior Ficci official.
"If you look at these states, most of them are rich in resources which are not being fully exploited yet. So, investors like them," Ficci Director (Economics and Reserach) Soumya Kanti Ghosh said.
However, both Joshi and Ghosh said that not all the investment proposals would materialise for different reasons which include difficulties in land acquisition and business uncertainties, following problems in the world economy.