Bhubaneswar, Nov 12 (IANS): Tata Group's total investment in Odisha will soon cross Rs one lakh crore, said its Chairman N. Chandrasekaran here on Monday.

For the Tata Group, the association with Odisha is "very long, more than 100 years old", he said.

Chandrasekaran also said Tata Steel was given its first iron ore lease by the Maharaja of Mayurbhanj in the early part of 20th century. Since then, the group has significantly expanded in the state.

"Already, we have made investments worth Rs 75,000 crore and with the announcement of expansion of (Tata Steel's) Kalinganagar plant, another Rs 25,000 crore would be invested. Total investments will soon cross Rs 100,000 crore in the state," he said at the Make in Odisha Conclave here.

Not only Tata Steel has a large capacity, Tata Motors has a significant presence with its 30 service stations and dealers network and Tata Power has four generation units here, he said, adding that the TCS is the largest IT company in the state with about 5,000 professionals and the second phase would take it to a total of 12,000 professionals.

The group's companies in retail and services sectors have engagements in the state, Chandrasekaran said.

He said the group's experience in the state has been extremely "satisfying".

The state is blessed with a lot of resources with stable government, proactive bureaucracy, ready infrastructure, strong mineral reserve, large pool of skilled manpower and secured social environment, he said.

The state produces 1.8 lakh technical graduates from over 950 institutions, who are excellent resources for development of any part of the country.