A good industrial and investment policy is a must to attract investment and spur robust economic activity for industrial development in Manipur, said Industry Minister Nemcha Kipgen.
She was speaking at a one day workshop on ‘Framing of Industrial and Investment Promotion Policy (IIPPM)-2022’, that was held at the conference hall of Institute of Cooperative Management (ICM), Lamphelpat, Imphal on Thursday.
She said that the Economist magazine predicts that the condition is right for India to grow at the rate of 7 to 8 per cent in the coming decade. It will make India the fastest growing major economy in the world, she said. Manipur ranked 30 out of 33 states in per capita income as well as gross domestic product, she further said, adding Manipur needs to get its act together so that it will not be left behind in the nation’s march to development and prosperity.
She further informed that at present, there are 34,293 units in Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) which was 1,085 units in the year 2015. This clearly shows that Manipur is marching ahead in the field of industrialisation, she asserted.
She sought cooperation, valuable suggestions and ideas from the stakeholders concerned for successful Framing of Industrial and Investment Promotion Policy (IIPPM)-2022 to further accelerate economic growth in Manipur through proper linkages of infrastructure, human resource and administrative support mechanisms.
Industrial and Investment Promotion Policy (IIPPM), 2022 has a vision to tap the tremendous industrial potentials of the state based on the available raw materials, traditional strength in various small-scale units, talented human capital available market and demand, she mentioned. The emerging scenario of Manipur becoming a key socio-economic hub with the coming railways into the state capital and the Trans-Asian Highway and its location advantage as India’s gateway to South-East Asia will be beneficial under the policy, she said.
It has a vision to promote sustainable industrial growth especially in the MSME sector and create direct and indirect employment opportunities, she said. She further said, adding it has a vision to provide a conducive environment for investments.
It may be mentioned that IIPPM is formulated to strengthen the state government’s mission to act as facilitator to accelerate industrial development and its allied sectors in Manipur through development of infrastructure, enhancement of human resource, provision of incentives, garnering of more investments amongst others for the inclusive socio-economic development of the people of the state.
The workshop was attended by secretary of Textiles, Commerce and Industry, Michael Achom; director of Textiles, Commerce and Industry Yumnam Robita and officers, officials and stakeholders from various industrial sectors.
