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With the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the Centre, Gujarat is poised to grow at a better rate than earlier, said state Finance Minister Saurabh Patel at the Business Standard Round Table Conference on 'Gujarat under new leadership' held here on Monday.
The state government, under the leadership of Anandiben Patel, will have growth as its thrust area and will come out with three major policies, namely an industrial policy, electronic policy and information technology (IT) policy, in the next few months. These policies will be as aggressive as the already announced textile policy for the state. Other thrust areas of the new CM would be the social sector, with focus on women empowerment, rural employment and self-help groups.
Delivering the keynote address, Saurabh Patel said, "I feel there are all the possibilities that Gujarat can grow at a better rate than earlier. Earlier, we did not have support from the Centre and today, we have very good support from it."
The minister cited the issue regarding raising the height of the Narmada dam. The NDA government gave clearance to raise the dam height by 17 metres within 17 days of taking charge. "The decision on the height will drastically increase the acreage (under irrigation) and bring additional income to farmers. Had this decision been taken five years ago, today Gujarat would have been different," Patel said.
He made it clear that with Modi at the centre, there would be clear sync between state and Union governments, and Gujarat will be following the same path shown by him (Modi) over the past 10 years. The policies of the state government will be in line with the party's (Bharatiya Janata Party) manifesto and there would hardly be any change from those defined within it.
Patel said, "We are going to come up with electronic hardware and IT policies shortly. Both these are going to be equally aggressive. Also, in the next couple of months, we will be coming out with the new industrial policy that will highlight certain areas which the government would like to put thrust on."
The previous industrial policy was announced in 2009. Government also targets to increase its share in the gross state domestic product to 32 per cent from the current 27 per cent.
The minister said for the new leadership in Gujarat, growth would be the thrust area as always, with special focus on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and cottage industries. "Gujarat is a manufacturing state and will remain a manufacturing state," he said.
In the state Budget for 2014-15, the government has emphasised on manufacturing, especially SME units. It plans to offer SMEs special concession for land. The state also plan to give concessions to private builders engaged in construction of private industrial estates.
"We want to double our SME units in the state in the coming years, as this is going to generate a lot of employment, as well as self-employment," Patel said, adding the government would provide bank guarantees for setting up such units.
For skilled personnel, the government is promoting Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs). The Budget allocation for ITIs has gone up from Rs 440 crore to Rs 1,200 crore in two years. It is also trying to reach out to maximum number of private companies so that ITI students get maximum exposure after completing the courses. They have also decided to give Rs 1 lakh loan to ITI graduates for starting their own business or shops.
Another major focus area would be the social sector, specifically women self-help groups and rural employment. "We believe in providing rural employment. Rural families should also earn more. A massive drive will be undertaken to improve milk production, number of animals and the quality of animals. A lot of financial benefits have been given to women groups and individuals," Patel said, adding these groups would be given land along with subsidy to build godown and grant for machinery.
The government also plans to promote specific sectors like diamond and polymer in Surat and southern Gujarat.
On the issue of goods and services tax (GST), Patel is confident the issues would get resolved in the next few months. He reiterated the demands of states that their revenues must be protected and there is a need for an information technology infrastructure, without which implementation of GST would not be possible. "State governments should be given more administrative and legal powers to deal with dealers," Patel said.
