Global Investors Meet 2012 in Bangalore from June 7 to 8

From Our Special Correspondent
Daijiworld Media Network - Bangalore

Bangalore, Apr 3: Enthused by the phenomenal success of the Global Investors Meet held under the Chief Ministership of B S Yeddyurappa in 2010, which attracted massive investments to the tune of over Rs 6 lakh crore, the present BJP Government headed by Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda is hosting Global Investors Meet 2012 from June 7 to 8.

Unlike the GIM 2010 held at the sprawling Bangalore Palace Grounds, the GIM 2012 is being held at the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre (BIEC) on the Tumkur Road.

The GIM Expo planned at the BIEC also seeks to showcase the top 20 industry and service sectors over an area of 20,000 square meters.

Over 10,000 business delegates comprising top management will have the opportunity of interacting and networking with business leaders and policy makers apart from engaging in Business to Business meetings and focussed conferences and tracks addressed by experts.

Karnataka’s Large and Medium Industries Minister Murugesh R Nirani, who held the same portfolio when the first GIM under the BJP government in the State was organized and remains a staunch loyalist of Yeddyurappa, has been holding roadshows in different cities for attracting investments and convincing industrialists and entrepreneurs to participate in the ensuing GIM 2012.

The Minister, who held a roadshow in Hyderabad along with Karnataka’s Commerce and Industries Department Principal Secretary K Jothiramalingam, sought to impress upon the industrialists and entrepreneurs of Andhra Pradesh on the State’s attraction as a hot investment destination due to its various attractions and advantages.

``Karnataka has always had a large number of corporates coming from Andhra Pradesh in the IT/ITES space or Pharmaceuticals, Infrastructure and enegy sectors,” he explained.

Senior executives from Hyderabad Chemicals, Ramky Infrastructure, Coromandel Cement, Apollo Group, Surana Group, Nuziveedu Seeds, Biometrics, GBPR Engineers, Indu Group  and many other leading industrial houses attended the roadshow at Hyderabad organised in association with FICCI and Ernst & Young as the Knowledge Partner for GIM 2012.

Andhra Pradesh industries have seen Karnataka as their second home with the state offering a healthy business environment by means of better infrastructure, single-window clearances among others, Nirani said.

He said the event aims to bring together business leaders, investors, corporations, thought leaders, policy and opinion makers under one roof. Apart from exhibitions and sectoral seminars, one-to-one meetings, B2B meetings and B2G meetings have also been organised as part of the global summit.

Some of the large corporates whose projects have been approved are Ultratech Cement, GMR, Grasim, NMDC, Luxor Energy, Hindustan Coca Cola, Lanco and KNR Constructions among others, while GVK is now on controlling the stake in the Bangalore International Airport Ltd (BIAL), the minister said.

Emphasizing that Karnataka was far beyond other states in the country in attracting Global investment, Nirani said the Government had made concerted efforts to introduce a number of investor friendly steps to bolster Global investments into the state.

A pointer to the Government’s seriousness is the recently implemented “Right to services Act” to bring in greater accountability among government officials and transparency in administration so as to deliver promised services within a given timeframe.

The minister encouraged investors to look beyond Bangalore, as Tier II cities in the state as they were well equipped to offer the best infrastructure and other requisite amenities. He added that the Government is committed to providing a special package for investors looking at regions outside Bangalore.

In recent times, the Government has initiated many projects across the sectors with infrastructure development and integrated development of large identified corridors for intensive economic growth and infrastructure creation were the priority areas, Nirani said.

Infrastructure: The Government is planning mega infrastructure projects like Special Investment Regions, Integrated Townships, focused industrial clusters, etc.

The Governemnt was setting up Pharma SEZ in Hassan, Pharma Park at Yadgir and provided wide scope for establishment of bulk drug manufacturing and formulation units.The State has also initiated 10,000-acre, first of its kind ITIR that has investment opportunities for Rs. 90,000crore.

The State’s Focus is mainly on renewable energy, Merchant Power Plants, Gas linkages. The state has placed special emphasis on building the technical textile and textile machinery sectors across the state.

The Principal Secretary, Commerce and Industries Department Jyothiramalingam said the government was focused on the potential sectors for investment in the state. He also highlighted the incentives and concessions available for investments. Commenting on the state’s ability to offer Global companies a favourable investment climate.

The investor confidence could easily be gauged by the resounding success of GIM 2010 which generated investment commitments worth Rs. 3.92 lakh crore. The summit saw the participation of over 7,000 delegates and 2,000 companies from 21 countries and 21 States.

He stated that nearly 62 per cent of the MoUs signed during GIM-2010 were in various stages of implementation while 36 units had taken off. Another 36 were in various stages of implementation and 250 units were in the pipeline.

While GIM 2010 largely attracted corporations from the steel, cement and power sectors, the  GIM 2012 will focus on more sectors like Energy, Urban Infrastructure, Transport Infrastructure, Engineering & Aerospace, Tourism, Chemicals and Petro Chemicals, Biotechnology, Education, Information Technology, Tourism, Mines & Minerals, Textiles and Apparels and Agro Food Processing with a special focus on MSME segment.