States woo foreign investors at ADB meet

Several states including Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh have made a strong pitch to foreign investors to put money in their infrastructure projects at an ADB session on Friday.

Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan said his state offers immense opportunity to investors in terms of development of various sectors including infrastructure,real estate,housing,airports and education. Emphasising the fact that Mumbai is the biggest industrial hub in the country,Chavan said that the state also remains the most attractive destination for human resource and tourism as well.

We have several challenges. We want to make the state drought-proof while another challenge is trying to find balance growth. However there are several opportunities. Infrastructure offers huge opportunity. Then there is housing area,airport,health and quality education, Chavan said.

Maharashtra is the second most populous state after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India.

Uttar Pradesh,which is the venue of the 46th ADB conference,too tried to hard sell the state as an attractive investment destination. Wooing investors,minister Brahma Shankar Tripathi,who holds the portfolio of home guard and provincial armed constabulary,said that the state is trying to move forward towards development and is willing to give all the facilities to investors. All facilities will be provided to investors in UP. We are fighting against corruption and we want you to help us. Subsidy will be given to those who want to invest, he said. After hosting the CII-partnership summit in January this year,this is the second big event that the state is hosting, with an aim to send a positive message to investors as an investor-friendly state.

Meghalaya chief minister Mukul Sangma also said that even though law and order and infrastructure pose a challenge for the state,the work is on to improve land customs stations on the borders to boost trade.

J Geetha Reddy,minister for major industries,sugar,commerce and export promotion,Andhra Pradesh,countrys fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population,listed the achievements of the state and said that if small and medium entrepreneurs want to become a part of public-private partnership model,the state would facilitate it.