Virbhadra invites Tatas, Ambanis to invest in Himachal

In an effort to give a fillip to industrial investment in Himachal Pradesh, the state government has now invited top corporate houses in the country to invest.

State Industry Minister Mukesh Agnihotri said, "Citing attractions like cheap and uninterrupted power supply, clean environment and land availability for setting up of big industrial units. Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh has written to the Tatas and Ambanis, among others big names, to invest in the state. We are now focussing on attracting big corporate houses. We want more investment in manufacturing, tourism and power sectors."

The state government plans to hold roadshows in Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Bangalore and Kolkata. The chief minister and senior state government officials will attend these events to make an effort to woo investors and get them to set up shop in Himachal in the next couple of months.

"If investors come forward at these centres, the team of government officials from various departments, headed by the chief minister, will clear the proposed projects instantly," he said.

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government had announced a 10-year excise concession and other tax sops in 2003. But the excise holiday was cut short by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in 2010.

In recent years, many investors have started leaving the state.