Kejriwal begins poll run: Will ensure Ludhiana industry surpasses China and Manchester

“Similarly, ahead of every election, all parties come to traders and industrialists, why? To ask for their money. Today I have also come to you but I don’t need your money. I only need your support,” said Kejriwal.

Addressing the event – ‘Vyapariyaan tey karobaariyan naal Kejriwal di gall baat’ – Kejriwal said the dream of Ludhiana industrialists to take over China will also “become the dream of Punjab government” if AAP comes to power.

“A panel of representatives from each industry will be constituted which would meet CM every 15 days. All decisions taken in those meetings will be implemented like a command. If present system continues, you people will keep giving memorandums to the government and they will keep landing in trash bin,” said Kejriwal, adding, “I am here to invite you all to become our partners, to make Punjab Number 1 in industrial sector”.

Making five promises to the traders, which he claimed, have already been implemented in Delhi, Kejriwal announced that if AAP forms government in Punjab: 1) There will be complete peace in the border state; 2) an effective mechanism will be put in place to ensure that industry stakeholders take decisions and government implements them; 3) Inspector raj, goonda tax, corruption and tax raids will be over and there will be doorstep delivery of government services; 4) A 24×7 helpline for traders to lodge any kind of complaint will be sett up; and 5) 24×7 cheap, uninterrupted power supply for businesses and factories will be ensured.

“Businessmen want peace, they want law and order. Punjab is a border state. AAP government will maintain proper law and order and ensure peace in state. There will be an effective mechanism under which you will take decisions and we will only implement them. Your dreams will be ours, it will be our dream too to leave behind China and Manchester, it will a dream of our government too,” he added.
He said, in Delhi, his party received complaints that inspectors used to collect money from shops around Diwali. “We issued a 24×7 helpline number and asked traders send us photos of such people. No inspector dared to ask for bribe after that. We will issue a similar number for Punjab too,” said Kejriwal, adding, “There will be 24 hour supply of cheap power for industry. We did it in Delhi, we know how to do it”.

“I am not there to ask for your samarthan, but to invite you for becoming our partner. You will run our government, you will take decisions and we will only implement them. (Delhi Deputy CM) Manish Sisodia did not know everything about education and (Delhi Health Minister) Satyendra Jain did not know how to run Mohalla Clinics but today they are world famous. It is because we know how to respect people who are experts in their fields and we give them decision making power,” said Kejriwal.

“We stopped tax raids in Delhi and reduced taxes. Our tax revenue shot up from Rs 30,000 crore to Rs 60,000 crore. This shows our businessmen want to work in honest environment.”

“Today cycle industry experts here told me that India is the second largest producer of bicycles in the world after China. But while China produces 20 crore units a year, we produce 2 crore. Our industrialists get respect in China when they go there but no one values their vision here. Their vision is to overtake China and make India the largest producer in the world but can you tell me if there is any union minister or state minister who shares this vision? None. We will make it our dream too,” said Kejriwal.

Representatives from bicycle, hotel, textile, food and vegetable processing industry attended the meeting.

Earlier, a few protesters tried to stop his convoy and raised slogans, demanding that he should clarify his stand on river water dispute of Punjab with Haryana.