Make in Odisha: State gears up for second summit, after success of first

State had attracted over Rs 2 lakh crore investment intents in last year's 'Make in Odisha' conclave

After successfully hosting the 'Make In Odisha' summit in December 2016, the state government is gearing up to organise its showpiece investment summit in 2018.

Even though a final call on the specific dates of the event is yet to be taken, the initiation for hosting the showpiece event has taken off.

In 2016, Odisha had for the first time organised the 'Make in Odisha' event, along with the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

Officials said a meeting would be conducted with the officials of the state industrial promotion agency Industrial Promotion & Investment Corporation of Odisha Ltd (IPICOL), land acquisition agency Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation and mining PSU Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC).

"Particulars about the date and month of hosting the 'Make In Odisha' event is likely to emerge after the meeting", said an industries department official.

The 'Make in Odisha' conclave, the state's biggest showpiece event, had attracted over Rs 2 lakh crore investment intents in the state.The state had received a total investment intent of Rs 2,03,235 crore. Out of this, there were investment proposals of Rs 97,911 crore in the minerals and metals sector, while the tourism sector received an investment proposal of Rs 2,076 crore.

An investment proposal of Rs 38,443 crore was received in the infrastructure sector, while the power and regeneration sector received an investment proposal of Rs 29,932 crore.

Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), Tata Steel, Adani Group, National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and the Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) were among the key investors at the last year's event.

With the implementation of projects continuing to be a sore point, the Odisha government has set up a committee headed by the state's industries minister to speed up the translation of the intentions into formal proposals by investors and consequential implementation.