Mineral-rich Jharkhand has received a whopping R3.04 lakh crore investment proposals, mainly from the mines, energy and urban development sectors, in its maiden global investors’ summit held in Ranchi. A total of 209 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) were signed during the course of the two-day summit that also attracted 11,209 delegates, including 600 from overseas.
Though MoUs are essentially expressions of interests and do not really fructify in most cases, Jharkhand chief minister Raghubar Das was optimistic and said that most of the MoUs would be “realised on the ground by 2018”.
Addressing the valedictory session of the summit, for which the state government had conducted three overseas and six domestic road-shows, Das said these MoUs would create 1.29 lakh direct and 2.7 lakh indirect jobs in the state.
The department of industries and mines received the maximum (121) investment proposals, worth R2.10 lakh crore, followed by urban development at R38,000 crore and energy at R37,000 crore.
Some of the large investment proposals include R20,000 crore each from Adani Group and Jindal Steel and Power. Aditya Birla Group, Vedanta Resources and Essar Group have also committed R5,000 crore investment each. Official sources said Adani Group, led by Gautam Adani, is also examining the possibility of investing R50,000 crore in coal to polymer complex.
Investors have also evinced interest in investing in agriculture, animal husbandry, health & medical education, tourism and transport sectors, among others. “I assure you that my government will start working from today itself towards the implementation of the MoUs that have been signed during this summit, during the stipulated time-frame,” Das said.
The proposed investments, if implemented, would lead the state to its industrial and economic growth and socio-economic development of the peopled.
The state, which was formed in 2000, is among the leading states on providing ease of doing business. The state is also the fifth largest recipient of FDI. It’s also the richest mineralised region in the country, holding over 40% natural resources.