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Big-ticket investment plans fail to take off in Madhya Pradesh
Many big-ticket investment projects that were signed during the Global Investors Summit in 2012 in Madhya Pradesh have failed to materialise even as the next investors' summit is on cards.
Some big-ticket investment projects signed during the Global Investors Summit in 2012 in Madhya Pradesh have failed to materialise.
Sahara Group had inked a deal with the state government to invest Rs 20,000 crore in dairy and agro sector, but the projects are yet to take off. The company had grand plans for Madhya Pradesh. Addressing Global Investors’ Summit in Indore in October 2012, Sahara Group chief Subrata Roy had said, "We are going to make a foray into dairy business by opening world’s biggest dairy in MP. The dairy will have 25 lakh cattle and we plan to produce 21 lakh litre of milk daily."
Nearly two years after inking the deal, there is no progress on the ground. "The project is yet to start. We had showed them government land, which they did not like. Then, they were looking to buy private land," a senior industry department official told HT. An e-mail query to the company went unanswered.
Sahara had also announced its plan to set up an international level club in Indore with an investment of Rs 600 crore. Also, Sahara Group has plans to build world class hotel, golf course and sports complex in the city. The group had plans to produce milk products and other dairy items. The investment was to be done by a vertical of the company called Sahara Pure Eatables Corp.
However, with the group in financial trouble, it is unclear when the projects will start.
Some other big projects touted during the previous investors’ summit have failed to materialise. One such announcement was that of automobile company Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) showing interest to build a SUV (sports utility vehicle) manufacturing unit in the state.
During the 2012 summit, the industry department officials had claimed that M&M was considering investing nearly Rs 3,000 crore to set up a SUV manufacturing facility in the state. The company officials were also shown 500 acres of land in Bagroda, 20km from Bhopal. However, the company did not even sign an agreement with the government.
Experts say that the government will have to do a lot more work if it wants to attract automobile majors to the state.
"Major automobile companies need a world-class infrastructure besides auto ancillary units. Unless the infrastructure is in place, the state will fail to attract big auto companies," an industry association office-bearer said.
Other big projects including that of Delhi-based Surya Global in cement sector and Hyderabad-based Suryachakra Group in power sector have been shelved after agreements were signed due to delay in mining permissions.
