Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath today assured a US business delegation that the state will ensure business friendly atmosphere and a single window system for investors.
Interacting with the delegation, which visited the state under the aegis of US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF), Adityanath said, "To facilitate industrialists and investors, a single window system has been established, and it is being monitored by the Chief Minister's Office... The investors are being given investment-related information, facilities and permissions from one office itself."
The investors will find positive and creative atmosphere at all levels, he assured the delegation.
The chief minister also said that two expressways are being built. The Purvanchal Expressway will be from Lucknow to Ghazipur and will also link Varanasi, Ayodhya and Gorakhpur. Bundelkhand Expressway will pass through Agra, Jhansi, Chitrakoot and connect with Bundelkhand.
"Along both sides of the two expressways, industrial corridor will be built. Work on Purvanchal Expressway will start by end of this year, while work on Bundelkhand Expressway will commence by March-April 2018," he said.
"Work on expanding the metro rail is going on in Lucknow, Ghaziabad and Noida. Soon work on metro rail in three other cities will start. The state government is mulling over cheaper, better and reliable alternative of public transport system. For development of state, regional air connectivity is necessary. The government is working on this," he said.
"Owing to the efforts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a new era has heralded in the India-US relations. Under the leadership of the Prime Minister, India is progressing as an emerging economy in the world.
"The prime minister wants that Uttar Pradesh should move ahead expeditiously on the road of economic development. To further strengthen the India-US ties, the sudrirh arthvyavastha (robust economy) of UP will work as a backbone," the UP chief minister said.
He also said that the state government is committed to provide investor-friendly atmosphere in the state.
"For this power supply, better road connectivity along with other necessary facilities and proper law and order will be ensured," he said.
Earlier in the day over two dozen US companies evinced keen interest to invest in the state.
A 50-member delegation, representing 26 major US firms, had a detailed interaction with state cabinet minister Siddharth Nath Singh here to explore investment opportunities in UP.
Welcoming the delegation, Singh said, "We will give you red carpet welcome in the true spirit of 'Atithi Devo Bhava' (guest is God)".
"I welcome delegates to fulfil our 'Sankalp Patra' (manifesto) by creating employment through your investment in UP," he said, referring to BJP's pre-poll document in which the party had pledged to create massive job opportunities for youth.
Seeking to showcase the state as an attractive destination for investment, Singh said, "Yogi Adityanath government's narrative is different from the previous governments. We will give you a red carpet welcome in the true spirit of Atithi Devo Bhava."
Singh said, "We will work hard to ensure that those (sitting) in this room don't go to other states to invest, but invest in UP. This will happen by providing a better Eco System."
With the tagline "US in UP" on the lines of 'Vibrant Gujarat', the state government invited US firms to invest in the state.
The delegation, headed by Boeing India president Pratyush Kumar, visited the state under the aegis of US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF), which is committed to create the most powerful strategic partnership between the US and India and promote bilateral trade.
The USISPF said in a statement, "Our mission reaches far beyond this. It is about business and government coming together in new ways to create meaningful opportunities that have the power to change the lives of citizens."
It said that investment incentives offered by the state under the new chief minister "translates into a business-friendly climate for industry".
Singh told PTI that taking a cue from 'Vibrant Gujarat', the idea of 'US in UP' has been mooted to display the state's investment avenues in chemicals, petrochemicals, cement, gems, pharmaceuticals, textiles and engineering sectors.
He said a small delegation had visited this state two months back and realising the "tremendous investment potential" in the state, a bigger delegation was here today.
Singh said the foundation for the high-profile tour was laid when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the United States in June and invited CEOs of top US companies to invest in India, saying GST was a game changer that made the country a business-friendly destination.
Officials from the US Embassy and US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) are also a part of the delegation, which included representatives from Facebook, Adobe, Coca Cola, Mastercard, Mosanto, Uber, Honeywell, P&G, Oracle and GE Health, besides Pratt & Whitney, Merck, Medtronic, Azure Power and Cargill.
Uttar Pradesh has recently come up with an Industrial Investment & Employment Promotion Policy to create a framework to stabilise and make existing industries more competitive and to attract and realise new international and national investments in the industrial sector.
"Uttar Pradesh has tremendous scope in terms of development and investment. The scope of employment is ample in sectors like health, industrial development, education, infrastructure, information technology and tourism," Singh said, adding that the state government will extend all possible help and co-operation.
Focusing on tourism, Singh said, "There is immense scope of development of tourism in UP, and investors can invest in significant quantity in this sector. Every region of the state is known as a tourist destination, but owing to non-holistic development of the tourist spots, they are lying ignored. The government using its own limited resources is focusing on their development".
He also urged the investors to invest in tourism sector along with infrastructure. The state minister said, "The effort of the government is to ensure that the last man of the society is not deprived of health facilities. Work is being done to increase the speed of ambulances, so that the needy people can get benefit in short span of time.
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