Chief Minister Pinarayi has invited industry leaders in Telangana to invest in Kerala.
Speaking at an “investment roadshow” in Hyderabad on Friday, Mr. Vijayan showcased Kerala’s strengths to attract investors.
The Centre had ranked Kerala fifth in good governance. Kerala ranked first among southern States in ease of doing business.
Mr. Vijayan said the accent was on non-polluting and environment-friendly industries. The government’s industrial development strategy was firmly anchored to the principles of the “5R framework”: responsible industries and investment, reduced regulatory compliance burden, robust industrial infrastructure, renewed logistics ecosystem and a resilient thrust sector.
Kerala had enacted a progressive “one-stop omnibus” legislation, the Kerala Investment Promotion and Facilitation Act, 2018, to usher in ease of doing business.
The government had created the ‘Kerala Single Window Interface for Fast and Transparent Clearance (SWIFT)’ and the ‘Invest Kerala’ web portal to help investors get approval speedily and with zero red tape.
It also instituted the “Kerala - Central Inspection System (K-CIS)” to make regulatory compliance smooth and frictionless.
Investors would find Kerala’s high literacy rate, surplus water, clean atmosphere, hygienic surroundings, uninterrupted power and a verdant environment favourable. The State has a highly skilled workforce with international experience.
Mr. Vijayan said Kerala’s Gross State Value Added (GSVA) grew at relatively faster rates from 2016-19 despite a cyclone and back-to-back floods. Kerala looked forward to investments in medical technology, medical devices, virology, vaccine development and manufacturing, biotechnology & biopharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals and veterinary medicine.
The creation of a knowledge economy topped the State’s plan. It also desired investment in IT, hydrogen fuel production, petrochemical, food processing industries and other sunrise sectors.
Kerala was a leader for Medium, Small and Micro Enterprises (MSMEs) with a 23 lakh estimated number of enterprises as per records of the Government of India. Kerala had an array of industrial parks with world class infrastructural facilities.
John Brittas, MP; and Ayodhya Rami Reddy, MP; V.P. Joy, Chief Secretary; K. Ellangovan, Principal Secretary (Industries & NoRKA); Krishna Teja Mylavarapu, Director of Tourism & Executive Director of Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation; and N.S.K. Umesh, staff officer to the Chief Secretary, spoke at the roadshow.
