Hyundai Motor has approached the Punjab government for setting up its unit in the state. Disclosing this, Punjab Industry Minister Manoranjan Kalia said, “The talks are in their initial stages. They have made inquiries for setting up a unit. The company would need close to 50-100 acres in the state. We have written to them and said the possible locations for the unit could be Rajpura, Kapurthala and Ropar, where the state government has a land bank.” The state has significant number of auto ancillary units that supply components to automobile majors. In addition, the state also has tractor manufacturing units of Sonalika, Mahindra & mahindra and Preet.
Meanwhile, Kalia said Punjab had emerged as a preferred destination for investments in the field of information technology owing to its strong telecom infrastructure, IT compatible power policy, a spotless labour history and quality of life in the state, according to the study conducted by Chennai-based Ma-Foi Consultancy Solutions Ltd. He said the findings were of an extensive Investor Perception Study conducted by Punjab Infotech, the government agency meant for attracting, servicing and retaining IT/ITeS/ knowledge sector organisations in the state.
Two groups of investors were studied as part of the survey including existing investor organisations with operations in Punjab and potential investor organisations operating in the rest of the country. Fifty existing investor organisations and 150 potential investors were covered between September and November, 2010.
Kalia revealed, seven of every 10 organisations surveyed were interested in expanding business in Punjab. “71 per cent of investor organisations felt Punjab has good visibility amongst IT / ITeS organisations because of the number of similar organisations in Mohali,” he added. “Another major factor contributing towards IT investors keen to invest in Punjab is the state’s clean labour history. A whopping 78 per cent of respondents felt positive labour history is conducive for business,” Kalia said.
