Amit Shah to lay foundation of projects worth Rs 65,000 cr

The state capital is all set for the second ground-breaking ceremony, which will be organised at the Indira Gandhi Pratishthan here on Sunday. Union home minister Amit Shah will be the chief guest at the mega event and lay the foundation of projects of over 250 companies worth Rs 65,000 crore on the occasion.  

Uttar Pradesh governor Ram Naik, chief minister Yogi Adityanath and other ministers in the state government will be present. Besides, several prominent industrialists of the country will also be attending the event. They would share their experiences of working with the UP government and the Modi government at the Centre, said officials.

Among the leading industrialists expected to be present are Gautam Adani, chairman of the Adani Group, Ahmed El Sheikh, CEO of PepsiCo India, Sanjeev Puri, CEO of ITC, Shiv Nadar, chairman of HCL, N Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Sons, and HC Hong, president, Samsung India.

Officials said elaborate security arrangements were in place and the venue had been turned into a fortress.

Chinese mobile manufacturer, Vivo Mobiles, is the biggest investor at the second ground-breaking ceremony. It has pledged to invest Rs 7,429 crore in the state.

The next big investor is Torrent Gas Private Limited with a proposed investment of Rs 2,751 crore. Next is the South Korean giant, Samsung, whose investment stands at Rs 2,000 crore.Western Uttar Pradesh will be the biggest beneficiary having bagged around 54% of the total investment, while drought-hit Bundelkhand has got only about 4% of the overall share -- the lowest in the state. The division among other regions is as follows: Central Uttar Pradesh to get around 19% of the investment, Purvanchal (eastern UP) to bag about 10%, and the remaining to go to multiple locations across the state.

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath will use the opportunity to showcase the state as the most favoured destination in the country for conducting business and announce several sops for industrialists. 

“We are rolling out the red carpet for industrialists. Corporate houses are now knocking at our door, as they feel that Uttar Pradesh is a safe destination where their investment will be secure,” said Rajesh Kumar Singh, principal secretary, infrastructure and industrial development.

The day-long event will include six sessions and a CEOs’ roundtable conference.

During the various sessions -- on food processing industry, defence and aerospace manufacturing, electronics manufacturing, tourism and film, electronic mobility and power and renewable energy -- representatives of the state government and industrialists will discuss issues related to the sectors and the way forward for removing bottlenecks.

To recall, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in the state capital on July 29, last year, for the first ground-breaking ceremony of the projects approved by the state government during the UP Investors’ Summit in February 2018.

The projects or investments, for which the foundation was laid, were part of the Rs 4.28 lakh crore commitments made by top industrialists for UP. A total of 81 projects worth Rs 60,000 crore were formalised on the occasion. Out of these, 30 projects had been rolled out, 49 were in the implementation stage, while two companies had backed out, claimed the state government.