At FICCI, Nitish makes industry pitch

For the first time in more than 18 years, a chief minister of Bihar met a group of industrialists from FICCI, inviting them to invest in business opportunities in the state.

For the first time in more than 18 years, a chief minister of Bihar met a group of industrialists from FICCI, inviting them to invest in business opportunities in the state. Addressing a gallery of infrastructure, hotel, pharma, textile and alcohol industry players, Nitish Kumar, five months in the CM8217;s saddle, unleashed a flurry of aces with one point to make 8212; 8216;8216;Bihar has changed8217;8217;.

He hastened to add: 8216;8216;If you don8217;t believe that, at least believe that things are changing8217;8217;.

Unveiling a series of initiatives for industrial investment such as the Single Window Clearance Act, Kumar said: 8216;8216;A development commissioner will be the single-point person for all investment proposals and if any government department doesn8217;t grant approvals within set limits, proposals will be 8216;deemed8217; cleared.8217;8217;

Industrial policy initiatives apart, Kumar also emphasised that the law and order situation has improved considerably. He lined up a series of measures, implemented and proposed: 8216;8216;The fear has gone from people8217;s minds. In a case of kidnapping at Gopalganj in January, within 93 days, the culprits have been arrested, chargesheeted, tried and convicted. We are speeding up trials for Arms Act convictions. In cases of criminals out on bail with other cases pending against them, we are arguing for bail cancellations.8217;8217;

Nitish blamed the Lalu-Rabri regime for the problems he inherited, saying 8216;8216;police force recruitments have begun after years8217;8217; and the state is talking to 8216;8216;several central paramilitary force schools for training recruits8217;8217; as there are no police training facilities in the state. Until then, a Special Auxiliary Police has been created by hiring ex-Army jawans on a contract basis.

He made it clear that he didn8217;t expect industry to come to the state for 8216;8216;charity8217;8217; 8212; public investment would be high with or without private investment. 8216;8216;The state on its own will invest Rs 2,000 crore on pucca roads for rural villages with populations of

500 or more.8217;8217;

Planning Commission member and chairman of the Special Task Force on Bihar Satish Jha echoed him. 8216;8216;Bihar is at a take-off stage. You industry will come to Bihar not as a sympathiser, but seeing your own business and profitability on a competitive

basis,8217;8217; he said.

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Former Planning Commission member N K Singh supported Bihar8217;s case, saying, 8216;8216;Bihar is the first state to have a Single Window Clearance Act for investments and an Infrastructure Act. If all this is possible in two months, we are looking at an upward journey of exponential growth and Bihar can accelerate India8217;s GDP growth rather than drag it down like in the past.8217;8217;