BENGALURU: Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa is in Davos to push for investments for Karnataka. On Day 1 of the World Economic Forum on Tuesday, he did just that, though his pitch was for farm growth. The CM made a fervent appeal to investors to base their investments and industries in Karnataka keeping in view of the interests of farmers and to create more jobs. He also suggested to the investors to look at the economic development of farmers and rural masses along with their growth. He said this could automatically check the increasing suicidal tendencies in farmers.
“I am ready to go that extra mile to help the investors and industries which take care of our farmers and rural youth,” he said. Representatives of the 2000 Watt Company (Swiss-based) involved in smart cities development projects and food processing clusters, who made presentations on their projects, said they possessed technology and were ready to invest in food clusters in Karnataka which can provide remunerative prices to the farm produce.
“We will provide all assistance and scientific farm techniques to grow healthy food and market them with added value to the produce,” Andreas Binkert, a scientist and academic, said. Stating that the farmers’ development and rural economy were of utmost priority for the state, the CM said he was keen on the value addition to farm produce which could boost agricultural economy and consequently farm earnings.
Madhav Bhagwat, the founding partner of the company, briefed Yediyurappa and Industries Minister Jagadish Shettar on the new concept of smart cities planned by them. “We are experts in carbon-neutral smart township development projects,” he told the CM. Earlier, ReNew Power delegates expressed their interest in setting up solar power plants in barren lands in the state, particularly in North Karnataka districts like Vijayapura, Kalaburagi, Koppal and Raichur. “We are planning to set up power storage batteries and gadgets to store the power produced in excess of the state’s demand,” Samanth Sinha, CEO of the company, said suggesting to the government to eliminate all bureaucratic and legal bottlenecks to improve the ease of doing business.
Yediyurappa opined forums like WEF were the need of the hour, particularly when states were facing trouble in mobilizing resources on their own. “It is also a platform for the political leaders to invite and attract investments to boost the economy of respective states and countries,” he said.
BSY attends Trump’s speech
Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa attended US President Donald Trump’s session on Tuesday. He said Trump concentrated more on the US economy. “It is natural for any country head to speak about his country and its economy,” he said. The American President, in his keynote address, highlighted his domestic accomplishments and dismissed climate activists as ‘prophets of doom’.