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Dhoni may bat for brand Jharkhand to lure investors
Team India limited-overs captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni may soon help Jharkhand lure investors through television ads, photo shoots and voice recordings for radio channels, state industry department officials said on Saturday.
Team India limited-overs captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni may soon help Jharkhand lure investors through television ads, photo shoots and voice recordings for radio channels, state industry department officials said on Saturday.
Sources said the local cricketing hero met chief secretary Rajbala Verma in an informal meeting on Thursday and gave his consent for a campaign to promote the state. They added that a formal deal was likely to be formalised within a week or so.
A source close to Dhoni, who is in Ranchi to spend time with family and friends, also confirmed the meeting on the day of Eid.
“We will shoot commercials for TV with Dhoni in them and do photo shoots that can be circulated on the social media and major business events,” state industry director K Ravi Kumar said.
Last year, chief minister Raghubar Das asked Dhoni to promote tourism in Jharkhand.
Dhoni, with his huge fan-following across the globe, may well do the trick for investment-hungry Jharkhand, said industry officials. They said that Dhoni’s involvement in the promotion campaigns will boost the state’s plans of spreading awareness about its investment potential as well abroad.
Jharkhand, which has over 40% of India’s mineral reserves, has been working towards inviting foreign investors since the pro-industry Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power in the state in December 2014. The state government also plans to hold international road shows and Vibrant Gujarat-like investors’ summit to boost foreign investments.
The state recently signed MoUs worth Rs.62,000 crore during the Make in India Mumbai conclave, and is eyeing to lure international investors with China being one of the first target countries.
A delegation from the state visited China last year to invite companies to invest in Jharkhand and investors have shown interest in the electronics and electrical industry here, officials said.
This is not the first time a state has sought a cricketer’s help.
In 2015, the West Bengal government roped in former team India captain Sourav Ganguly to promote investment in the state through a TV reality show. The Mamata Banerjee government also planned to promote entrepreneurship in the neighbouring state through Ganguly’s show.
