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Referring to a recent Assocham report, Punjab Congress today held Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh 'responsible' for a drop in attracting fresh investments during 2014-15 leading to a dismal economic growth scenario in the state.
"The tragedy is that both father and son had been claiming spectacular development since 2007 but the report belies the claims," Punjab Congress President Pratap Singh Bajwa said in a statement issued here.
The PPCC chief referred to the "93 per cent fall in fresh investment in the state during the last eight years despite the high profile industrial summits organised by Sukhbir Badal".
He claimed that Assocham had pointed out that fresh investment in the state had fallen from Rs 36,650 crore in 2007-8 to a meagre Rs 2,600 crore in 2014-15, a decrease of alarming 93 per cent.
One of the basic reasons was that industrialists were not inclined to invest in the state "for certain extraneous reasons," the Punjab State Congress Chief said.
Bajwa said that according to the Assocham report, growth rate was 10.2 per cent in 2006-07, 4.6 per cent in 2012-13 and 5.3 per cent in 2014-15.
It was not just the situation on the industrial front that was alarming as the farm sector was equally in bad shape and stagnating, he said.
"The contribution of this sector to the state's GDP had declined from 33 per cent in 2004-5 to 20 per cent in 2014-15. While the state had failed to attract fresh investment the existing industry was in decline and the situation might have far reaching consequences," Bajwa added.
