MP is next destination for IT industry: Chouhan

Madhya Pradesh has everything including safety and ease of living to become the next Information Technology hub, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said at the Global Investors Summit (GIS) here on Wednesday.

IT majors such as TCS and Infosys are coming to MP, and the state already has four IT parks and IT Special Economic Zones (SEZs), he said.

''We are developing the Indore-Pithampur economic corridor which has 500 acres of commercial land available on both sides in which Plug-Play infrastructure will be developed,” Chouhan said.

“Here you have cleanliness, greenery, safety, peace and ease of living, which is what an IT company wants, and therefore, this (Madhya Pradesh) is the next destination of the IT industry,” he added.

Even the rentals in Madhya Pradesh are 7-10 per cent less than those in other cities which would be a major draw for investors, he said.

“We have established IT parks in Bhopal, Gwalior and Jabalpur, and in Bhopal and Jabalpur we have also set up electronics manufacturing clusters,” he said.

The state offers the IT and BPO (Business Process Outsourcing) companies attractive terms like land on concessional rates, capital, subsidy, training subsidy and relaxation in stamp duty and registration fee, Chouhan said.

Speaking about the textile and garment sector, the chief minister said he was interested in the sector as it offers employment to a large number of people. “Our daughters and sisters are working 24x7 in three shifts and you never need to halt production,” he said.

MP stands in the fourth place in the production of readymade garments but is aiming for the top position in the country, he said. Referring to the automobile industry, Chouhan said the Pithampur Auto Cluster alone employs 25,000 persons.

“We have support infrastructure for the auto industry like an Indo-German Tool Room, two central farm machinery training and testing institutes and an auto-testing track,” he said.

Talking about the state's wildlife bounty, he said, ''Madhya Pradesh is not only a `tiger state' but also a leopard state, vulture state, crocodile state and now has got the coveted status of cheetah state too.” The state also has immense potential for religious, heritage and wildlife tourism, he said.

“We did not have cheetahs here, but our prime minister has brought them from Namibia and another batch is coming from South Africa soon,” Chouhan said.

The cheetah tourism will ensure the development of Sheopur district and nearby areas, boosting the construction of roads, resorts, hotels and bringing taxi service and other facilities, the CM said.

“Madhya Pradesh now wants to run like a cheetah on the path of progress and development,” Chouhan added.

The newly constructed `Mahakal Lok' corridor around Ujjain's Mahakaleshwar temple is attracting so many devotees that hotels are overfull and home-stays are thriving, the chief minister said, while inviting investment in hotels and resorts in the holy city.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)