Jaipur, November 19, 2015: Day One of the Resurgent Rajasthan Partnership Summit 2015, being held here, saw a slew of announcements of strategic partnerships and investment intent in a number of thrust sectors identified by the State. The two-day global meet is being organised by the Government of Rajasthan in association with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). There were 10 special sessions – while eight sessions focused on thrust sectors in Rajasthan, there were two Focus Country sessions on Japan and Singapore.These sessions saw deliberations between central & State ministers,foreign experts & business leaders, industry captains,and senior officials from the State & Centre to understand issues and concerns, discuss strengths and partnerships, and chart the course for the future.
Focus Country Session - Singapore
At the Focus Country session on Singapore, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between The Rajasthan Housing Board (RHB) and Singapore Cooperation Enterprise. Under this partnership, Singapore will assist Rajasthan to develop two new townships in Jodhpur and Udaipur, with concept planning and infrastructure engineering. “Urban Housing is our core expertise; we have offered better housing every five years to our citizens and will be glad to use our expertise in Rajasthan,” said Mr. K Shanmugam, Minister for Home Affairs & Law, Singapore.
Mr. Shanmugam declared that Rajasthan was one of only two states in India that his country had decided to partner in wide ranging initiatives. Mr. Shanmugam also revealed that Scoot, a group company of Singapore Airlines, would soon commence direct flights between Jaipur and Singapore. The key areas of partnership that Singapore and Rajasthan have identified and will be exploring going ahead are Potable Water, Sustainable Urbanisation, Affordable Housing, Waste Management, Cleantech, Human Resource Development, Smart Cities and Food & Agriculture. Attending the session, Mr. Piyush Goyal, Union Minister for Power, Coal, New & Renewable Energy, has announced a Rs 325-crore advance grant for power transmission infrastructure in Jaipur. He appreciated the State Government for being the first participant of the UjjwalDiscom Assurance Yojana (UDAY) scheme launched by the Centre.
Focus Country Session - Japan
Japan’s long-standing business association with Rajasthan saw a defining moment when representatives from both the sides signed four MoUs at the Focus Country session. The MoUs were signed in the Auto, Logistics and Air-conditioning categories with Nagano Products, Daikin Air-Conditioning, Nippon Express, Sankyu Indian Logistics & Engineering. Japan, which is already the beneficiary of a country-specific investment zone at Neemrana, Rajasthan, with a second one coming up nearby at Ghilot, has sent a 100-member delegation to the Summit.
The delegation, led by Mr. Takeshi Yagi, Japan’s Ambassador to India, comprises representatives of leading Japanese companies like Daikin, Mytex Polymer, Hitachi Chemical, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi, and Mitsubishi Logistics, among others. Speaking at the session on Japan, the Chief Minister, Smt. Vasundhara Raje, said, “Japanese companies have fast-tracked our growth by making the right investments in Energy, Infrastructure and Technology sectors. At the same time, we ensured that none of these companies faced any problems related to basic infrastructure like roads and power.”
Auto ESDM
At the Automotive and electronic system and design management (ESDM) session, two MoUs have been signed to set up the first units of the exclusive Korean Industrial Zone that was recently announced.
Union Minister for Railways, Mr. Suresh Prabhu, said, “Automotive and ESDM are the sunshine sectors and are related to human aspirations. India should cash in on this opportunity for making the country a centre for the global supply chain.” The Minister said the Indian automotive sector should stress for their own design and learn from the experience of the Japanese and the Korean companies that have established themselves through their design. The Centre has notified Jaipur-Bhiwadi-Neemrana-Udaipur-Ajmer-Kota as the Brownfield Electronic manufacturing Cluster (EMC) for ESDM initiatives.
Skilling: Make in India
The session on Skilling Rajasthan focused on the initiatives undertaken by the State Government to promote skills in Rajasthan. At the session, two MOUs were announced – one with the Institute of Leadership Development Jaipur and IFCI Ltd. to set up a Centre of Excellence for Skill Development that would ultimately develop into a “Skill University”. The other MoU was signed between the Government of Rajasthan and Bosch Limited to set up facilities for skill training at 33 government ITIs, one in each district. These will be multi skill centers of excellence.
Mr. Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Union Minister for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, said, “Rajasthan and Kerala have adopted an integrated approach towards skilling. The Rajasthan Government has been able to raise funds from within its departments to further the mission of skilling within the State, which is an outstanding example of convergence.” The session was chaired by Mr. S. Ramadorai, Chairman, National Skill Development Agency & the National Skill Development Corporation.
Smart Cities & Highways:
The highlight of the session on Smart Cities & Highways saw the signing of an MOU worth Rs. 10,000 crore between the Public Works Department, Government of Rajasthan, and the Construction Industry Development Board, Malaysia.
“This agreement with Malaysia will give a big fillip to the road development efforts in Rajasthan. The investment will be utilized for the construction of state highways and development of district roads,” said Shri D.B. Gupta, Principal Secretary, Public Works Department, Government of Rajasthan. The session on Smart Cities and Highways focused on the advantages of developing urban infrastructure with an underlying purpose of ecological and economic sustainability. The session was chaired by Mr. Arun Nanda, Chairman, Mahindra Lifespaces.
Sustainable Tourism
One session focused on ways to tap the potential for Rajasthan’s tourism sector in a manner that will aid sustainable development. The session was attended by the UnionMinister for Tourism, Dr. Mahesh Sharma; Rajasthan Tourism Minister, Smt. Krishnendra Kaur; Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, Mr. Vinod Zutshi; Chairman, South Asia, Carlson Rezidor, Mr. KB Kachru; Chief Operating Officer & Managing Director, The Oberoi Group, Mr. VikramOberoi; and Principal Secretary, Tourism, Government of Rajasthan, Mr. Shailendra Agarwal.
Healthcare
In the session on healthcare it was revealed that biotech company Biocon will adopt 25-30 Primary Medical Healthcare Centers and convert them into e-healthcare centers. Additionally, Rajasthan Heath Minister, Mr. Rajendra Rathore announced that seven new medical colleges shall be set up in the State. Ms. Patricia Hewitt, Chair, UK India Business Council (UKIBC) said, “Britain and Rajasthan can mutually help each other in healthcare. We are keen to share our expertise on prevention and management of long term chronic diseases like diabetes. We also want to contribute in the area of training first respondent medics to handle road accident victims”.
Agriculture
The sector session on Agriculture was presided over by Mr. Dharmendra Pradhan,Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas. Addressing the gathering, Mr. Prabhulal Saini, Agriculture Minister, Government of Rajasthan, said Rajasthan aims to promote agro-processing industries and agri-marketing related activities in the State. Rajasthan has launched a new Agro-Processing and Agri-Marketing Promotion Policy 2015 with various financial incentives and other facilities to help farmers get competitive prices for their produce. The policy will help in transport subsidy for export of spices, provide subsidy for export of fruits and vegetables, incentives for quality, certification, R&D and Project Development.
Sustainable Mining
Participating in the focus session on Sustainable Mining, Mr. Tom Albanese, CEO of Vedanta Resources, said, “Rajasthan offers a huge opportunity for copper and gold mining in India. Exploration and innovation represent the future of the mining industry.” Mining employs 3.3 million people in the State and contributes Rs 8400 crore to the State’s GDP, highlighted Mr. Deepak Upreti, Principal Secretary Mines, Government of Rajasthan. The highlight of the session was the forging of a Sister State Relationship between South Australia and Rajasthan. The two States have agreed to cooperate in a host of areas including Water and Environmental Management,Resources and Energy.
Regulatory Reforms
The focus of the session on Regulatory Reforms was on the State Government’s efforts in creating the appropriate eco-system for supporting industrial growth. Presided over by Shri Ananth Kumar, Union Minister for Chemicals & Fertilisers, the session highlighted key initiatives such as Ease of Doing Business and refining policy for long-term growth. He said, “We do not need so many laws, rules and regulations to grow our economic activities.The basic scheme of Resurgent Rajasthan Summit is ease of doing business and the Chief Minister of Rajasthan, Smt. Vasundhara Raje, is the champion of it.” Mr. Amitabh Kant, Secretary, Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP), Government of India, said,“If you want India to grow year after year, scrap all rules India has accumulated for 65 years. To my mind, no act in India should be more than 3 sheets, no rules for more than 2 pages and no form should be more than 1 page. India needs to be made the easiest and simplest place to do business. I strongly believe, young start-ups and MSME sector are future drivers for growth.”
