'Policy paralysis at Centre hurting development'

Chhattisgarh CM Raman Singh said there was enough power in the state for all factories to run three shifts

Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh today said policy paralysis at the Centre was hurting industrial development. “Policy makers are confused,” he said. He came down heavily on the “no-go” policy of the Union environment ministry, which has demarcated ecologically-sensitive areas where industry is not encouraged, and slammed the United Progressive Alliance government for failing to come up with a coherent mining policy even after being in power for eight years.

Singh was speaking at Samriddhi, the annual event of Business Standard Hindi, which aims to bring together representatives of the government, business and academia to brainstorm on local economic issues. This was the second edition of Samriddhi in Raipur.

Giving a snapshot of what his Bharatiya Janata party (BJP) government has done to attract investment in Chhattisgarh, Singh, a doctor by profession, said there was enough power in the state for all factories to run three shifts. Chhattisgarh has about 17 per cent of the country’s coal reserves and is surplus in power production. The state has held two roadshows – one each in Delhi and Bangalore – to attract investors. A global meeting of investors is slated to be held in Naya Raipur, the new capital of the state, on November 2-3, in which businessmen are expected to announce investment plans for Chhattisgarh.

Talking about the rail corridors that would connect the mines and industrial pockets with rail lines, Singh said the railway ministry had some reservations when the state moved the proposal, especially about funding the Rs 10,000-crore project, yet he was able to convince the authorities to go ahead with it. “We made it clear that we don’t require fund, and the project will be completed on public-private partnership model,” Singh said.

In addition, Singh said the public sector should not be guided by profits alone, and raw minerals should not be exported. “In Chhattisgarh, we don’t allow traders to mine iron ore. Only those who can do value addition are allowed to mine,” he said. He also supported the proposed Food Security Act, which seeks to ensure a fixed amount of grain and pulses to all poor households at subsidised prices.

He said Chhattisgarh’s annual budget of Rs 40,000 crore was inadequate and it needed to be raised to Rs 100,000-150,000 crore.

Singh spoke for over an hour at the event. When asked if he was in the race to become the prime minister of the country after the 2014 general elections, he said there were other people in the country more capable than him to do the job. “I am just a small servant of a small state,” he added. “I am more worried about the 2013 elections in my state.” The chief minister also said he did not expect the general elections to be held earlier than 2014, because most political parties are not prepared for it.