NELLORE: Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Som Prakash informed that the government has taken several initiatives to promote and facilitate industrial development in States and Union Territories such as Make in India, Start-Up India, PM Gati Shakti, National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP), Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme, India Industrial Land Bank (IILB), and reforms in Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), Project Monitoring Group (PMG), Industrial Infrastructure Upgradation Scheme (IIUS) and others, which facilitate setting up of major infrastructure and industrial projects.
Replying to a question posed by YSRC MP Vemireddy Prabhakar Reddy in the Rajya Sabha on Friday, Som Prakash stated that industry is a State subject. However, the Centre comes up with several initiatives and policies from time to time to promote industrialisation in various parts of the country, including in Andhra Pradesh, which are meant to supplement the efforts undertaken by the States. In addition to the ongoing schemes of various departments and ministries, the government has taken various steps to boost domestic and foreign investments in India.
“An institutional mechanism to fast track investments has been put in place in the form of Project Development Cell (PDC) in all concerned ministries/departments. The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) being the nodal department for Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) has played a pivotal role in coordinating the initiatives aimed at creating a conducive business environment.
Under the Industrial Corridor Development Programme, to accelerate growth in manufacturing, the Centre has adopted the strategy of developing industrial corridors in partnership with States. It aims to develop greenfield industrial cities having ‘plug-n-play’ infrastructure with a ‘walk-to-work’ concept, he explained.
The objective of these industrial corridors is to expand the industrial output, increase employment opportunities, and provide better living and social amenities for the workforce. It provides world-class, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure for the industries and facilitates manufacturing investments in the country.
In the Industrial Corridor Development Programme, three Industrial Corridors have been identified in Andhra Pradesh. They include the Chennai Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (CBIC), Vizag Chennai Industrial Corridor (VCIC) and Hyderabad Bengaluru Industrial Corridor (HBIC). Under the programme, Rs 533.86 crore has been released to Andhra Pradesh since 2019, the Union Minister elaborated.