Punjab Commerce Minister pitches for saving old industry

With Punjab government looking to attract new industrial investments, the state Industry and Commerce Minister Madan Mohan Mittal today expressed concerns over the state of affairs of existing industry and strongly pushed for "requisite" steps to "save" the old industry.
Asserting that industry plays an important role in revenue generation, reducing unemployment and curbing drug abuse in the state, the minister hailed the existing industry for not shutting down their business activity even during the time of militancy in Punjab.
"We want that our existing industry should grow and flourish... Sukhbir Singh Badal (Deputy Chief Minister) is looking after new investments and I am looking after industry part. New industry is ok but my worry is about existing industry," Mittal said while addressing a CII workshop here.

"If you want to give them (new industry) two chapattis then one should also be given to the existing (industry)," he said, adding "there is a need to save the existing industry".
Notably, the Punjab government is offering various fiscal incentives, including exemption form VAT, stamp duty, CST, property tax, electricity duty, among others, for fresh investments and expansion projects depending upon scale of investments.
Mittal said it should be ensured that the survival of existing industry should not be adversely affected.

Referring to the state government's proposed investments summit planned in October this year, the industry minister asked his principal secretary (Industry) and CEO of Punjab Bureau of Investment Promotion Anirudh Tewari about steps being taken to promote existing industry.

"We are talking about new investments and a conference on investment summit which is going to be held in October this year. But what steps you (Tewari) are taking for the improvement of existing industry here," Mittal said while questioning Tewari who was also present.
The state government is going to hold Punjab Investment summit in October this year at Mohali to attract new investments by positioning the state as the best investment destination.
Earlier, the state government had organised first such summit in December, 2013 wherein it managed to sign pacts for Rs 65,000 crore of new investments.