GE's Pune facility to be operational from mid-2014

The $200 million manufacturing facility being set up by GE India in Pune will start functioning by June, a top official at the conglomerate said here today.

GE South Asia president and CEO Banmali Agrawala said the products manufactured from the facility will also be exported to other countries.

"It should be up open really by the middle of next year. We will be making a host of different things ranging from aviation components to turbo machinery components to measurement and controls and wind turbines," Agrawal told reporters on the sidelines of an ISB's Leadership Summit.

The Government of Maharashtra and GE last year signed an MoU for the upcoming manufacturing site which is located at MIDC Industrial Park at Chakan, Phase II, Pune.

The facility, to begin with, will focus on Energy products and technologies driven by the industry needs for power generation, transmission and distribution as well as measurement and control, GE India had earlier said.

Agrawala said India should focus on becoming a manufacturing hub for the global markets rather than remain a domestic player for own consumption.

"The fundamentals of the country have not changed in any way. The basics have not changed. There is an opportunity to step up the India advantage in manufacturing in India for the world," he added.

In his keynote address at ILS-2013, Agrawala said there is huge mistrust and distrust on the business community all over the world.

"The business has never perhaps in the past become such an uncomfortable or unwelcome community or term in the society. I think the value of the perception of businesses or the industry has taken a beating and there is something that we have to come out," he added.

"The amount of distrust and mistrust that is there in the system is huge. Not talking about certain pockets, it is there much across the world. That is manifesting itself into various ways (such as) excessive regulation through excessive legislation through Government control," Agrawala said.

Replying to query, he said the India is on a learning curve in the regulatory process and it is working well.

On rupee depreciation, he said there may not be much impact on GE India due to currency fluctuation.