CHIEF Minister N Biren Singh on Friday said the B20 conference, being hosted by Manipur, is a great platform for the state to showcase its strength and opportunities for multilateral business partnerships in various sectors in the backdrop of the rich cultural heritage. He said the conference would shape policies towards sustainable growth and development and usher in peace and progress in line with the theme of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam’ (One Earth, One Family, One Future). Singh, who inaugurated the B20 conference on 'Opportunities for Multilateral Business Partnerships in ICT (information and communication technology), Tourism, Healthcare and Handloom' at the City Convention Centre, Imphal, said he is honoured to host the event. This is the first of the four sessions of B20 — the official G20 dialogue forum for the global business community — scheduled in Northeast India. Delegates from 23 countries participated in the conference. The inaugural session was attended by Union Minister of State for External Affairs R K Ranjan Singh, Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash, Chief Secretary, Manipur, Rajesh Kumar, Joint Secretary (summits) G20 Secretariat, government of India, L Ramesh Babu, among others. Addressing the conference, the Chief Minister said Manipur, with a population of 2.72 million and an area of over 22,300 sq km, is the Land Gateway of India to South East Asia. The state has the perfect setting for implementing India’s 'Act East Policy' and it is the bridge between South East Asia and India, he added. Singh asserted that once the Asian Highway in Myanmar gets completed, road travel from Manipur to Bangkok will be possible in just 16-18 hours. “Plans are afoot to start international flights from Imphal to Mandalay in Myanmar and Bangkok in Thailand,” he said, adding that Imphal International Airport will soon have a new integrated terminal and an air cargo terminal. Train services would also reach Imphal city by next year, he informed, and said the state has been recognised as the “most improved small state in the overall category” for three years in a row in the State of the States survey. Singh said a new industrial and investment promotion policy has been adopted to promote investment in the State. To promote ‘Ease of Doing Business’, the Manipur Industrial Single Window Clearance Act, 2021 was enacted. He further said Manipur has huge untapped potential in medicinal plants, horticultural products, aromatic plants and spices. Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Parkash, said that India will make sure that the G20 Presidency is “inclusive, ambitious, decisive and action-oriented”. “The G20 must provide a crucial forum for businesses to convene and collectively address key global issues with a unified voice,” he said.
