Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan Friday said the state is making significant strides toward becoming an investment hub, assuring investors that they won’t face the “cobweb of procedural delays and meet the barriers of red tape.”

“Kerala’s investment scenario is at the cusp of history,” Vijayan said while addressing the inaugural session of the Invest Kerala Global Summit (IKGS 2025) at the coastal town of Kochi.

He noted that the state has made major strides in simplifying procedures with regard to investments. He said one such example is the Kerala Micro, Small, Medium Enterprises Facilitation Act, 2019, under which MSMEs can start business merely by obtaining an acknowledgement certificate online portal. “Government here considers that it has a great role to play as a facilitator and a catalyst,” he added.

Vijayan said Kerala has established 6,200 startups with an investment of ₹5,800 crore, creating 62,000 employment opportunities in the last eight years. “We aim to establish 15,000 startups and create one lakh employment opportunities by 2026,” he added.

On the physical infrastructure front, the Chief Minister said that the Vizhinjam Port development is proceeding fast and the project will be completed in 2028 ahead of schedule.

Addressing the event virtually, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari said that the Centre has launched road infrastructure projects worth about ₹50,000 crore in Kerala. “We have 31 upcoming projects spanning 896 kilometres costing about ₹50,000 crore,” Gadkari said, adding that the Centre has already completed ₹20,000-crore-worth road infra projects in the state.

Over 3,000 delegates, including Union and state ministers, foreign delegates, and industry leaders, are expected to attend the investment summit. The two-day investment summit aims to attract investments in 22 priority sectors, including in areas of AI & Robotics, Aerospace & Defence, Logistics, Lifesciences, Medical Devices & Biotech, and renewable energy.

(The reporter is in Kochi, Kerala, at the invitation of the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation.)