 "Naveen Patnaik, Odisha")
In a step towards the creation of new employment opportunities and boosting of economic activities in rural areas, the State Government has decided to set up district-level Industry and Investment promotion agencies (DIPAs) in different districts. This was decided in a high-level meeting headed by Chief Secretary Suresh Chandra Mahapatra.
Chief Secretary Mahapatra said, "These agencies should be dedicated towards facilitation and handholding of the micro, small and medium enterprises. They should operate as single-point-contact for all entrepreneurs and investors". It should facilitate them right from the time of project formulation and capacity building to financing, starting of production and market linkages. It would also facilitate them for availing different assistances from Government as per prevailing provisions.
Further, Chief Secretary directed the Collectors to take a proactive role in the promotion of micro, small and medium enterprises in their respective districts. Mahapatra added, "MSMEs are movers of economic growth and their promotion in the district will result in equitable growth". Collectors were asked to provide decent office space in the Collectorates for setting up the units.
It was decided that DIPAs would be managed by three professionals under the direct supervision of the respective collectors. Those would be set up in different districts in a phased manner with feedback and learnings about the functioning and outcome of the agencies from each preceding phase. It was targeted to pilot the intervention in three districts namely Ganjam, Sundargarh and Jagatsinghpur. Principal Secretary, Industry, Hemant Kumar Sharma said that the first phase of piloting could be started by August. Then it would be extended to the districts like Angul, Balasore, Jajapur, Jharsuguda, Keonjhar, Rayagada, Sambalpur and other districts on the basis of learning from the pilot phase. Target was set to cover all districts by March 2022.
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