Kerala, TN Can Synergise Strengths to Scale up Industrial Growth: Minister P Rajeeve

CHENNAI:
Kerala and Tamil Nadu can supplement each other in promoting industrial development by synergising resources and capabilities for mutual advantage, Minister for Industries, Law and Coir P Rajeeve said, during an interaction with leading investors in Chennai.

“Suppose you are setting up a big manufacturing unit. We can provide the necessary software. Or, if it’s an automobile firm, we can serve you with automotive technology. The two states can grow together,” Rajeeve said at the interaction organised by Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) jointly with Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) last evening.

Acquisition of vast stretches of land is the lone hiccup in starting industry in Kerala due its high density of population, the Minister said, while listing out Kerala’s new set of initiatives aimed at promoting investment and ensuring ease of doing business in diverse sectors.

“Here in Tamil Nadu, for an entrepreneur needing, say, 2,000 acres of land, negotiation with just one owner may be enough. In my state, for 100 acres we may have to talk to some 1,000 owners. That apart, Kerala has a thoroughly business-friendly environment that is making a positive change in the perception of entrepreneurs about our state,” the Minister said during a 75-minute session.

Kerala has embarked on a range of industry-friendly schemes that seek to resolve issues of limited availability of land. These include promoting Private Industrial Parks and Campus Industrial Parks, besides an amendment to the Land Allotment Policy that guarantees Industrial land on a lease basis for 60 years for projects with a minimum land requirement of 10 acres, Rajeeve pointed out.

Kerala’s Principal Secretary (Industries and Commerce) APM Mohammed Hanish and KSIDC Managing Director S Harikishore also briefed the investors on various initiatives that helped transform the state into an attractive investment destination.

The meeting was also addressed by CII Tamil Nadu Council Chairman Srivats Ram, his Kerala counterpart Vinod Manjila and industrialist Sreenath Vishnu of Brahmins Food India.

Responding to questions from the gathering, Rajeeve said the recently inaugurated container transshipment port at Vizhinjam near Thiruvananthapuram is a major boost to industrial prospects of both the states.

The government is implementing a plan to open a logistics park in every span of 20 km. The Cabinet has cleared a Ring Road project, which will make major improvement in transportation.

The Minister said Kerala has Asia’s best startup ecosystem as per evaluation of rating agencies. The government extends to startups the benefits being provided to IT firms, besides other accelerators like scale-up grants and the Fund of Funds scheme.

The Minister listed out initiatives that facilitated easy availability of industry licences and checked unhealthy effects of surprise inspections, amid an ambitious government drive that has led to the registration of 2.65 lakh MSMEs in the past two years.

Hanish, in his power-point presentation, highlighted the ways Kerala’s Industrial Policy 2023 sought to “build up new edifices for investors”. The state’s development models are an “ideal mix of technology and human resources”, he added.

Manjila, who represented the Kerala chapter of CII, said Kerala’s industrial development model was unique as the state was even giving awards to panchayats that support setting up of industries.

Ram of Tamil Nadu CII said the consolidated GDP contribution of the southern states was “significantly higher” compared to the rest in the country, courtesy a stronger industrial climate and lesser socio-economic tensions.

Harikishore chipped in with certain specifics in Kerala’s industrial promotion schemes. Shri Meeran and Shri Vishnu said Kerala industry was driven by “proactive roles” from the Minister and the bureaucracy in tandem.