E-Paper
To check exodus, Uttarakhand speeds up process to invite investors
With an aim to check forced migration from the hills of Uttarakhand by creating entrepreneurship and salaried employment opportunities for local unemployed youth, the state government has “expedited” the process of investment promotion both in small and large scale industrial sectors
With an aim to check forced migration from the hills of Uttarakhand by creating entrepreneurship and salaried employment opportunities for local unemployed youth, the state government has “expedited” the process of investment promotion both in small and large scale industrial sectors.
As part of the process an Investment Promotion and Facilitation Centre (IPFC) has been set up in the industry department here.
“State-of-the-art unit that is connected online with all departments will ensure a single window clearance for industrial investments in the state,” additional director, industry, SC Nautiyal said, adding it (IPFC) would ensure swift facilitation of all kinds of clearances including land related and environmental.
“Besides, through IPFC, investors will also get the information from different departments pertaining to the latter’s respective policies and investment requirements in different sectors,” he told HT on Monday.
Nautiyal said IPFC would also be linked online with field departments located in all the 13 districts in the mountain state.
The step “aims” to invite industrial investments in all sectors such as tourism, health and wellness, yoga, herbal, agriculture and horticulture, organic farming and Information Technology.
“All deserving investors will be provided clearances within 15 days after they would submit Common Application Forms (CAFs) to us expressing their intent to invest in the state.”
Nautiyal said the single window system would also “help boost” investments in the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and large scale industrial sectors.
Those (large scale industrial units) “will be set up in the three plain districts and MSMEs will be promoted” in the rest (10) hill districts.
“Investors would be encouraged to set up MSMEs, particularly environment friendly MSMEs, in the hills as they are small in size,” he said, clarifying that the step would help check forced migration from the hill districts.
“That will be possible because MSMEs will help create both entrepreneurship and salaried employment opportunities for the local unemployed youth,” Nautiyal said.
According to him, all proposals by investors to set up MSMEs will be cleared by the District Level Empowered Committees headed by district magistrates.
“All such proposals would be assessed from all angles including those relating to pollution, environment and forest clearances,” Nautiyal said.
“Once the proposals will be approved by those panels it will be mandatory for all departments to extend their full cooperation to investors in setting up of MSMEs and their smooth operations.”
Plans were also afoot to ensure that some MSMEs “act as ancillary industries” for Large Scale industries.
“The system is being put in place for MSMEs so that they could supply semi finished products produced by them to large scale industrial units,” Nautiyal said, adding such a system would also be introduced for the SMEs in sectors such as farm, horticulture, herbs, etc.
In that connection, the department of industries is working “in tandem” with Himalayan Action Research Centre (HARC), a Dehradun-based nongovernmental organisation.
“We help farmers in rural areas to prepare semi finished products from farm produce besides herbs and medicinal plants they grow,” said Mahendra Singh Kunwar, a well-known social activist and the founder of HARC.
“Those semi-finished products are used in large scale industries that produce finished products in bulk,” he said, adding that the experts at HARC also help hill farmers in grading and packaging their farm produce besides sharing with them fruit processing techniques.
“This value addition helps them (farmers) sell their semi finished products to large scale industries, which fetch them better prices,” Kunwar told Hindustan Times.
