Vibrant Gujarat could draw participation from other states
Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi chalks out a broader canvas for his flagship biennial investors meet,Vibrant Gujarat's 2011 edition, as he plans to make participation in the summit open for other states in the country.
Hari S Bhartia, the newly elected president of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), who met the chief minister here today, said, "The minister is mulling to make participation in the event open for other states".
Modi today floated the idea that the event not be confined to Gujarat only, but other states can also use the platform to leverage their investment potential, informed Yatindra Sharma, chairman, CII Gujarat State Council.
He added that CII will work jointly with the government to establish the mechanism that will facilitate this. Sharma said, "CII has reach in all states, and we are willing to help Gujarat in this endeavour.”
Vibrant Gujarat Summit held in January 2009 had seen investment promises worth Rs 12 lakh crore and representation from around 45 countries. Japan, which was a partner country in the 2009 summit will continue its association through Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO).
Meanwhile, the apex industry body is also working with the Gujarat government as well as the Centre and foreign partners on the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor (DMIC) project. CII is a part of the DMIC task force, and is also working as a part of the policy group that is drafting a manufacturing policy for India with the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP). Bhartia said, “We are looking at the possibility of ensuring how states could make the most out of infrastructure drives such as the DMIC.”
Bhartia further said that he expects the nation's GDP to grow at 8.5 per cent this year.