Yes Bank comes out with strategy for Uttaranchal

Yes Bank, a new private bank in India, is very "bullish" on the developmental prospects in Uttaranchal.

The bank has come out with an investment strategy report titled "Uttaranchal: The next destination" for the state, in partnership with PHDCCI. The report was recently released by Chief Minister N D Tiwari here, bank officials said.

The report highlighted key growth sectors in Uttaranchal that should be harnessed for sustainable and commercial socio economic development of the state. It also details implementable strategies for sustained and continuous investment in the state with a focus on agri business, tourism, information technology, biotechnology and infrastructure.

According to Tushar Pandey, regional head, strategic business development and state government, Yes Bank, "The challenge in the case of Uttaranchal is to harness untapped potential of the identified sectors and create adequate forward and backward linkages to ensure citizen empowerment and sustainable economic development. Furthermore, substantial attention needs to be paid to the development of basic infrastructural facilities to ensure rapid industrial growth in the state as this is one of the major impediments to the state's progress in terms of realizing the full potential it has owing to its topographical features".

Uttaranchal's potential in agri business, tourism and hydro power is already well known. Further development of the state can be catalysed by undertaking thematic project development based on the principles of public-private partnership, especially in the new sectors including infrastructure, IT, biotechnology besides hydro power, that should be tapped into for the development of the state, the bank said in its report.

Efforts to give push to developments in the state needed to be catalysed by quality investments with direct involvement of local stakeholders, it said. Pandey said Yes Bank was fully committed, and planned extensive intervention in the state through its knowledge- banking approach.

As the service sector was fast becoming the key area for business activity, marketing initiatives for promotion of tourism was urgently required.

Other than pilgrimage tourism, adventure, eco-wildlife, leisure and cultural tourism also needd to be promoted. Newer tourist destinations were needed to be identified and developed, keeping in mind the requirements of domestic and international tourist, it said.

The report also highlights that whereas Uttaranchal is a predominantly an agricultural state with approximately 70 per cent population directly employed in agriculture and allied activities, branding of agri produce would be the key to capitalising in the international market. Introduction of new and high valued crops should also be urgently done.

It also highlights the need for a concerted action towards harnessing the biotechnology potential of the state.

The government has earmarked and committed a 1000 acre campus in the city of Pantnagar as its epicenter for a Biotech Park. The report points out that IT has tremendous potential in three critical areas in Uttaranchal.