States offer their best to woo investments

Eleven states that took part in the interactive session with NRIs held on the second day of the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas here offered the best of policy support and infrastructure to investors from abroad.

However, Narendra Modi, chief minister of the most developed state, Gujarat, declared that his state was no more in the race with others in the country for investments as it had reached a stage where it was aspiring to be on par with China, Japan and Germany in terms of industrial development.

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar asked the delegates to give his state a chance, while competing states like Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal tried to showcase best of their facilities "� quality infrastructure, trained human resources and industry-friendly policies.

Taking up the cudgels on behalf of Indians working abroad, Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy bemoaned the lack of concern for its overseas workforce. Criticising the civil aviation ministry for being 'insensitive' to the problems of the people going abroad from Kerala to seek employment, Chandy said that his government had decided to set up its own airlines to provide affordable transport to its people.

Making a presentation on the achievements of Gujarat on the industrial and agricultural fronts, Modi claimed that his government was instrumental in the policy-driven development with minimum grey areas, thus increasing the pace of investments and growth.

Stating that labour reforms could bring a revolution in industrialisation, the Gujarat chief minister urged the Centre to either fully take charge of the matter or leave it entirely to the state governments for making flexible labour laws.

He also declared that he would turn his villages into manufacturing centres and help them sell their products in global markets rather than allow MNCs to turn them into their markets.

Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, whom the Prime Minister chose to promote as a role model after Budhadeb Bhattacharjee of West Bengal on the reforms front, tried hard to impress upon the overseas Indians about the investment opportunities in the state and the government's pro-investor policies.

He also gave extensive details of the ongoing efforts on the infrastructure development front while showcasing the social infrastructure available in Hyderabad.

While most of the states are being represented either by their chief ministers concerned or ministers, Tamil Nadu has got the heads or the country heads of MNCs and global IT companies that have their bases in the state, including the head of the World Bank's back office in Chennai, to promote it as the best destination for investors.

After a brief speech by Tamil Nadu IT minister Jayakumar, a high-profile video presentation was made where the representatives of various global companies lauded Tamil Nadu for its infrastructure and investment-friendly environment.