Kerala all set to tap post-COVID-19 industrial potential

Kochi, Aug 13 (PTI) Kerala is set to tap the post-<br>COVID industrial potential fully on the strength of a set of<br>investment-friendly legislations enacted by the state<br>government, according to State Industries Minister<br>E P Jayarajan.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;    A Special Investment Promotion Task Force with<br>Chief Secretary Vishwas Mehta IAS as Chairman and Principal<br>Secretary Industries and Commerce Dr K Ellangovan IAS as<br>Vice-Chairman has been constituted to take forward the<br>efforts in a time-bound manner, the minister said in a<br>statement issued by the Industries department on Thursday.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;    The enhanced trust of investors in the<br>Government has been evident from the huge response to the<br>projects showcased at the Global Investor Meet, ASCEND 2020,<br>held in Kochi in January, the minister said.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;     As many as 54 projects with a total investment<br>of Rs 25,000 crore presented before the investors from India<br>and abroad at the two-day event got underway within months.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;    Another 15 projects with a total investment of<br>Rs 700 crore are set to go on stream in the next few months<br>and 23 projects totalling Rs 5456.48 crore within a year.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Apart from these, 61 projects are in the final stages<br>of processing, Jayarajan said.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;    The key legislations that have significantly<br>improved the investment friendly atmosphere in the state<br>included the Kerala Investment Promotion and Facilitation Act<br>2018, the Kerala Micro Small Medium Enterprises Facilitation<br>Act 2019 and the Kerala Single Window Boards and Industrial<br>Township Area Development (amendment) Act, 2019.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;    These reform-oriented legislative initiatives<br>have ushered in a transparent and time and cost-saving<br>investment climate.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The amendments have done away with several<br>unnecessarily harsh rules, the minister said.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;    Simplification of rules pertaining to land<br>registration, building permits, pollution control measures and<br>power and water connections has greatly enhanced the ease of<br>doing business in the state, Ellangovan said.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;    As many as seven acts and 10 rules have been<br>amended while enacting the Kerala Investment Promotion<br>Facilitation Act 2018, based on which the government has<br>created an e-platform that enables investors to submit<br>proposals in a common application form and secure approvals<br>through an online clearance mechanism, Ellangovan said.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;    The procedures of pollution control board in<br>giving clearance to projects having an investment of upto Rs<br>10 crore have been simplified under MSME Facilitations Act<br>2019.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;    Fast clearance centres have been set up to<br>ensure that all required approvals are provided within 30<br>days.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;    The single window clearance mechanism has been<br>entrusted with powers to facilitate clearances from various<br>departments for investment proposals, he said.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;     Reforms in the MSME sector have substantially<br>contributed to the economic development of the state.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; They seek to channelize Keralas energies as a state<br>with high social development index and skilled human resources<br>for entrepreneurial activities, especially in the startup<br>ecosystem, the statement said.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;    The government has also introduced a policy to<br>support start-ups by purchasing their products and services,<br>besides facilitating financial grants to scale up and market<br>them, it said.<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;     Key sectors identified for promotion include<br>transit-oriented logistics development, electronics and high-<br>tech sectors, tourism and hospitality, manufacturing<br>industries, waterways development and food and spices<br>processing units.PTI TGB BN<br>WELCOME   <br> BN<br>WELCOME

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)