Maharashtra government to unveil 5 major policies

The government of Maharashtra is set to unveil five major policy initiatives aimed at attracting massive investments in several sectors during the Make in India week, a flagship event to showcase most innovative products and manufacturing processes that have been developed in India.

According to a senior official at the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC), the government is hopeful of signing memorandum of understanding (MoU) worth Rs 4 lakh crore during the six-day event starting February 13, which will see participation by government delegations from 49 countries and business delegations from 68 countries. “We are targeting up to Rs 4 lakh crore of investments through the agreements,” said Bhushan Gagrani, chief executive officer, MIDC.

While addressing the press conference, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said that the state would use this opportunity to the maximum to showcase Maharashtra as the most ideal investment destination in the country. “We will announce five major policy initiatives during the Make In India week like the electronics and retail policy. This will pave the way for more and more investment in Maharashtra. We will also highlight other major measures taken by the government to improve the ease of doing business. We are hopeful of signing the maximum investment MoUs during the six-day event,” he added.

Mr Fadnavis declined to quantify the amount of investment that the state is targeting during the week. However, he said it would be a ‘big number’. “Officials from the industrial department have been holding discussion with various business houses during the last two to three months. Our focus is to ensure that the MoUs translate into actual investment on the ground,” he said.

On the issue of growing distress in the agriculture sector, the chief minister said that the Make in India week would also have a special session to solicit greater investment in the food-processing sector.

“We want farmers to get a better remuneration for their produce,” he said and added that government also has plans to scale up value addition in the state textile sector and support the industry in tandem with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘farm to fashion’ vision.