Bhubaneswar: The Government of Odisha, hosted an investment promotion roadshow, the Odisha Investors’ Meet in Bengaluru on May 17, with a special focus on the Textiles, Apparel, and Technical Textiles Sectors.
Pradeep Kumar Jena, Chief Secretary, Hemant Sharma, Principal Secretary, Industries Department, Dr Arabinda Kumar Padhee, Principal Secretary, Handloom, Textiles & Handicrafts Department, Shovan Krishna Sahu, IRS, Director-Handloom, Textiles & Handicraft Department, and senior officials from the industries Department & IPICOL were present in the meeting, which was attended by over 100 delegates, representing various textile industries based out of Karnataka.
Sharma made a presentation about the industrial ecosystem in Odisha where he emphasized the industry readiness of the State.
During the presentation, Sharma highlighted the State’s over two decades of stable governance, the State’s position in the EoDB ranking, the competitive cost of doing business, the impact of investment facilitation, best-in-class incentives and highly skilled human resources, which gives the State a distinct competitive advantage over others.
He also spoke about the various industrial parks and regions the Government of Odisha has developed to provide best-in-class facilitation to investors across sectors. Mr Sharma also highlighted that the markets in Eastern and North-Eastern India are growing faster than other parts of the country and Odisha provides industries with the best facilities to set up units to cater to these markets.
Speaking about Odisha’s industry readiness, Sharma said, “Odisha under the able and visionary leadership of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is becoming the Industrial Hub of the East and a gateway to the East and South East Asian Markets.”
Dr Padhee, Principal Secretary, Handloom, Textiles & Handicrafts Department spoke about the emerging Textile and Technical Textile ecosystem in the State. He talked about the growth-focused and future-oriented Apparel and Textile Policy 2022 brought in by the Government of Odisha to further strengthen the Apparel and Textile sector and attract new investments into the State. He enlightened the audience about the technical textile and textiles parks in the State which offer industry-ready infrastructure to investors planning to invest in the State. He also highlighted the various major players in the textiles and apparel sectors that have set up their units and their success stories.
Further on in the occasion, representatives from Shahi Exports, and ABFRL shared their experiences of investing and operating in Odisha. They highlighted the industrial infrastructure, single-window system, and the support they have received from the Government of Odisha. They said that they are excited to establish their presence in Odisha and contribute to the State’s economic growth and build long-lasting partnerships with local communities. Rahul Jindal, Head Operations (Odisha), ABFRL informed the gathering that their plant in Odisha has now become even more cost-effective than the apparel units in Bangladesh.
On the occasion, Jena said, “Odisha is one of the fastest growing economies in India and has consistently grown above the national average in the last decade and a half. We are fast emerging as a major industrial destination in India because of the abundance of natural resources and strategic location which can cater to the ASEAN region. Odisha’s skilled and productive human resources, progressive policies, and strong result-oriented governance provide a unique ecosystem to their investors to set up their industrial units in the State.”
“Today, Odisha is ranked among the top States in India in terms of live manufacturing investments and has been accorded the achievers status in the ease of doing business ratings by the Government of India. Under the leadership of our Chief Minister, the State government has taken a holistic approach towards service delivery to citizens and businesses. We are today becoming a destination of choice for investors across the country. I would like to welcome all the Industry Captains; associations and their members present here to come and explore Odisha as your next investment destination.”
Kalyan C Mohanty, Executive Director, IPICOL concluded the session by extending his heartful regards towards all the investors for attending the Investors Meet. He urged the investors to look at Odisha as their next investment destination.
On the sidelines of the roadshow, the Government of Odisha Delegation led by Jena, met several senior investors from the Textiles and Apparel, Technical Textiles, and Wearables sectors as well as from the Metal and Metal Downstream, Agriculture Equipment Manufacturing, Logistics, Green Energy and Green Hydrogen etc, on 17th and 18th May.
The meetings focused on the key offerings from the Government of Odisha and the various emerging opportunities in Odisha for investors across sectors. During the discussions, Jena highlighted the major pro-business reforms undertaken by the government and asked the Industrialists to explore Odisha as a potential destination for their businesses.
On 17th May 2023, the senior delegation from Odisha led by the Chief Secretary held one-on-one B2G meetings from 2.30 PM to 7.00 PM hosting 22 investors from various sectors. While on 18th May 2023, the delegation hosted 24 industries, primarily from the Textiles and Apparel, Technical Textiles, and Wearables sectors. During the two-day event, the State was able to garner investment intent of nearly Rs 11,500 Crores with an employment potential of over 31,500.
The potential investors were extremely pleased with the State’s new Apparel and Technical Textiles Policy 2022 and the Industry Policy Resolution 2022. The investors were also impressed with the industrial infrastructure being developed by the State and believe that Odisha is going to be the next Textiles Hub in the country. As this is one of the most employment-intensive sectors, the Government of Odisha has identified it as a Thrust Sector and is keen to attract investors to Odisha to build a robust Textiles Ecosystem in the state.
The Chief Secretary instructed the Industries Department and IPICOL to organize more such sector-specific roadshows and events to further promote the industrial ecosystem and progressive policy of Odisha. He also instructed the officials to identify more industry-ready land across the state as well as to ensure that the time between land identification and handover of land to investors is reduced so that faster grounding of projects is made possible.
