Punjab To Shift Focus On Agro-Industries

Punjab is coming out with a new agro industrial policy with a special package of incentives to establish a strong linkage between industry and agriculture as near-saturation has been reached in foodgrain production, according to Chief Minister Sardar Parkash Singh Badal.

"Punjab has been primarily an agricultural state. However, a stage of near saturation has been reached in foodgrain production. A large quantity of agricultural produce is marketed without any value addition... I am sure the new policy will give a boost to Punjab's agrarian economy," Badal said at a meeting organised by PHD Chamber of Commerce & Industry in New Delhi yesterday.

 

The state government is also focusing on industrial reconstruction. It has constituted district-level committees and Sub-group of State Level Inter Institutional Committee to identify sick units and devise suitable rehabilitation packages.

The state has already constituted a monitoring committee with members from the Reserve Bank of India, state financial institutions, banks and industry representatives to monitor the flow of credit to small scale industrial units in the state.

"In today's day highly competitive market, modernisation and technology upgradation have to be an integral part of industrial development. We have widened the scope of interest subsidy scheme for modernisation, technology upgradation and purchase of pollution control equipment by including all commercial banks for term loan lending," the Chief Minister said.

"The scheme has also been extended to units located in the municipal limits of Ludhiana, Patiala and Jalandhar which are otherwise no incentive areas," Badal added.

The state has invited industry to set up base in rural areas. A special package of incentives for units to be located in rural focal points and within a radius of half a kilometre from the periphery of notified rural focal points has been worked out.

Besides, other industries, dairy units, green houses, composite bee keeping units, fisheries, scientific poultry/hatchery units have also been covered under this scheme.

The state is framing a new land allotment policy to streamline the system of allotment of plots in various industrial focal points.

On the status of various power projects in Punjab, the Chief minister said the first unit of Guru Har Gobind thermal power plant of 210 mw has been commissioned and the second unit of 210 mw would be complete by the end of this year.

Work on the Ranjit Sagar Dam, which bas been languishing since 1979, is being expedited and the 600 mw project will be commissioned shortly.

Setting up of the 500 mw Gobindwal thermal power plant has already been entrusted with a private company for execution on a build-own-operate basis.

Another 150 mw power station at Bhatinda in joint sector with Indian Oil Corporation will be commission in 1999-2000. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd plans to set up a fuel-based power plant of 490 mw capacity near Bhatinda.