Policy for auto component manufacturing on anvil

In a bid to woo investors in automotive components manufacturing, the state industries department is mulling to come out with a dedicated policy for the sector.

Spurred by the buoyancy in the auto sector in the country, investment in the ancillary sector is expanding rapidly and the state government is keen on tapping this potential.

“We are going to come out with an exclusive policy for manufacturers of auto components. The state has good potential to be one of the leading hubs for auto component manufacturing and we will be offering a host of incentives for such investors. The draft of the policy will be prepared soon after studying the incentives offered by other states. We will also hold due consultations with prospective investors and other stakeholders,” said a senior government official.

Orissa which has attracted investments worth over Rs 9 lakh crore across sectors, mostly from mineral-based industries, has attracted only one major investment in the auto component manufacturing space.

RSB Transmission had entered into a MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) with the state government for setting up an auto component manufacturing plant at Choudwar near Cuttack at an estimated cost of around Rs 400 crore.

The state offers good resources to support automobile component manufacturing units like availability of quality pig iron, pure aluminium ingot, steel flat products and steel rounds.

In addition to this, there is availability of skilled personnel for the sector with manpower drawn from institutes operating in the city like Central Tool Room Training Centre and Central Institute for Plastic Engineering & Technology (CIPET).

The Indian auto component industry has been registering growth of 20 per cent per annum since 2000 and is projected to maintain high growth range of 15-20 per cent till 2015.

The industry which touched $10 billion in 2005-06 is expected to grow four-fold to $40 billion by 2015.