‘Home away from home’ for Japanese investors in MP

The Madhya Pradesh government is working to set up a Japan Industrial Town (JIT) which will house all amenities to suit the taste of the Japanese to woo Japanese investors to the exclusive industrial zone earmarked in Pithampur near Indore.

Taking lessons from the lukewarm response it received from Japanese investors during the Global Investors Summit in October 2014, the state government now aims to leave no stone unturned in making the Japanese connection work.

“The Japanese investors told us that they prefer to live as a group and in an ambience resembling home (Japan). They like to play golf, prefer their own cuisine, and would like their children to study in Japanese medium schools,” chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan had said at a recent function in Dhar district.

The Madhya Pradesh government has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Japan External Trade Organisation (JETRO) to facilitate Japanese investments in the proposed industrial township. The deal was inked during chief minister’s 10-day trip to Japan and South Korea in the last week of September.

The government will organise an investment seminar in the state for the Japanese companies with the help of JETRO. The date of the seminar is being worked out, a state industry official said.

“The MP government’s proposal to Japan to set up an exclusive industrial zone in Pithampur is a copy of a similar Japanese zone operational in Neemrana in Rajasthan. The government will have to build a world-class infrastructure to attract these investors,” CII Madhya Pradesh state council president Girish Mangla said.

“The trick basically is to make them feel at home,” Pithampur Audyogik Sangathan president Gautam Kothari said. “However, the key will be development of social and other infrastructure such as shopping complex, school and health centres,” he said.

“The state industry department has prepared a detailed project report (DPR) for the exclusive industrial zone for Japanese investors with a focus on development of modern infrastructure,” an official of Audyogik Kendra Vikas Nigam (AKVN) Indore said.

MP-Japan relations

The MP government signed an MoU with the Japan External Trade Organisation to facilitate Japanese investments in the proposed industrial township in Pithampur near Indore.

The deal was inked during the CM trip to Japan and S Korea in September.

The state govt had received lukewarm response from Japanese investors during the Global Investors Summit in October 2014 and will organise another investment seminar in the state soon, the details for which are being worked out