With Goa government setting up the Investment Promotion Board in 2014, the industry bodies in Goa have expressed mixed reactions. The concern for the industry bodies are that the major job creator, the manufacturing or the power sector, has not set foot in the State so far.
Goa Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) has always expressed its concern about the stagnant manufacturing sector in Goa, particularly after the expiry of tax exemptions in 2004. GCCI had earlier strongly recommended the setting up of an Investment Promotion Board to boost investments in the State.
GCCI President, Narayan Bandekar said, “We think that so far the IPB has succeeded in creating fresh interest in Goa among the investor community in India. The Investment Policy envisages to bring investment of about Rs 25,000 crore and create about 50,000 jobs over a period of five years. So far in less than two years, the Investment Promotion Board has had about 12 meetings and cleared some 114 proposals involving an investment of around Rs 9620 crore with an employment potential of over 20,000. I think this is a fairly good progress. I am sure that in the next few months, you will see actual progress on the ground and within the next 18 to 24 months many of these projects will go on stream and actually start generating the jobs. I am sure that at this rate the IPB will exceed its initial estimates.”
As far as logistics infrastructure is concerned, GCCI feels that industry’s major bottleneck is the weak Zuari Bridge which cannot handle heavy loads and container traffic. With the proposed new bridges on Zuari and Panjim and proposed double lining of Konkan railway should meet majority of the logistics requirements of the Goan industry.
Quality and uninterrupted supply of power is still an issue, but the impression the GCCI gets from interaction with their members is that the position today is much better than what it was a few years back.
“As director, I am seeing a great change in the working of GIDC which makes industrial plots available to entrepreneurs. First of all the new regulations have brought in total transparency in the process of plot allotment. GIDC realises that land is a limited resource and is now allotting plots more judiciously than ever before. Instead of acquiring fresh land for creating industrial estates, the stress is now on making maximum use of land currently with GIDC,” added Mr Bandekar.
He further said that they have approached TCP to allow reduction in open space so that large areas within every industrial estate may be available for allotment to industry. As per existing guidelines, the coverage in industrial area is only 50 per cent. So slight reduction in open space will not have any significant adverse impact. Government is also interested in finding an amicable solution for land locked in SEZs instead of acquiring fresh land.
Expressing his opinion on various Boards like IDC, EDC, DITC¸GEDC, ITG and GTDC, Mr Bandekar said, “I think most of them have representation on IPB. Each one of these Boards is now working in tandem with each other and everyone is clear about their roles in the overall developmental agenda of the Government.”
Advisor to World Trade Center Goa, Manguirish Pai Raiker is of the opinion that the policy has very good objectives and also the intentions are exemplary. According to him the most important aspect is creation of opportunity for employment as the technically qualified youths are seen leaving the state for want of job opening.
“Industry or the service sector is the best medium to generate jobs. The attitude of those seeking jobs is also not very healthy as they only look for government jobs which are supposedly a cushy one. There is a need to change this mindset and prepare them for the blue collar jobs for which they are trained,” said Mr Raiker.
Secondly, Mr Raiker believes that there is a mismatch between what is promised and what is delivered as far as infrastructure is concerned. Power, water, and connectivity to the industrial estates specially the new ones where the land is available, is not very favourable. The parameters of ease of doing business are also left wanting. The approvals at various levels, the government support during the implementation phase is lacking. The numerous start-up NGO’s which sprout up take you by surprise and create a draconian situation.
“Setting up of the Investment Promotion Board was a long standing demand of the Industry .But this has only added to the existing windows for clearance instead of single window. The less said the better. From our perspective, the government needs to study the action report and the present functioning of the aggressive states like Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra etc and adopt the good practices as well as the changes they have brought about to facilitate the Industrial development and promotion in those states. We are willing to be a part of this process and also help in bringing about the necessary changes if any,” added Mr Raiker.
Similarly, the President of the Verna Industrial Association (VIA), Damodar Kochkar told Herald that, “As far as Verna Industrial Estate is concern we are still seeking to get basic infrastructure. As far as quality power (electricity) is concerned it is still a dream for us.”
State Head of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Goa, Gazal Bhambri said that, “As for availability of land for industries, IPB has converted land for some projects approved by them to ‘Investment Promotion Area’. Bringing clarity to the roles and responsibilities of other concerned departments, providing high quality power and logistics infrastructure to industries are in progress.”
