VIJAYAWADA: The State government, which was supposed to roll out the new industrial policy 2020-25 by the end of last fiscal, put it on hold and now it is revising the policy with more emphasis on the development of existing industries rather than running after new investments. As the chances of getting new industries are bleak with the outbreak of COVID-19, which changed the scenario, the government has decided to shift its focus on existing industries.
In fact, the government with more emphasis on simplifying the procedures involved in clearing investment approvals, ensuring transparency in every level from land allotment to provision of water and other infrastructure facilities, prepared the policy to gain the trust of investors and planned to table it in the Budget Session of the Legislative Assembly in March so as to implement it from the financial year 2020-21. However, the outbreak of coronavirus followed by the lockdown, forced the government not only to postpone the rollout of the new industrial policy but also to change it with more emphasis on giving a boost to the existing industries.
“We are running after investments all the years, but now it is going to be a different set of things after the outbreak of coronavirus as the scenario has changed across the world. Hence, we have to revise the new industrial policy in accordance with the prevailing conditions,” said Industries and Commerce Minister Mekapati Goutham Reddy.
Speaking to TNIE, the minister said that now they are focusing on an action plan to bail out the existing industries and then to create a conducive environment for new investments. “We are redrawing the entire policy as there will be a major change in the scenario pre and post-coronavirus. The new investment cycle will not start for sometime given the scenario across the world and we will have to analyse all the factors. It prompts us to come up with a unique new set of rules which other States may probably follow,” he said.
Informing that Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has given clear cut instructions to take care of the existing industries first instead of offering incentives to attract new investments, he said that they are drawing the policy in the direction of extending all support to bail out the existing industries by giving priority to MSMEs and those industries providing employment to more people. This is the time for us to think out of the box. We have to go through what the world would be tomorrow, have to do an in-depth analysis and pitch for the future accordingly, he observed. Stating that the industrial policy needs to be revised with more focus on ensuring the survival of the existing industries, he said it would be rolled out by the end of this month after getting the approval of the CM.