No show of non-BJP Chief Ministers

Sanjay Kirloskar, chairman and MD, Kirloskar Brothers Ltd; secretary, of ministry of commerce and industry Amitabh Kant and chief minister Devendra Fadnavis at the Make In India venue at Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) on Thursday. (Photo: Shripad Naik)

‘Make in India’ week remained largely dominate’d by states ruled by the BJP and its allies. Though Telangana, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka participated in the event, their chief ministers were conspicuous by their absence. Even the state with the highest population Uttar Pradesh, did not participate in any of the events held during the week.

The ambitious programme by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Make in India was organised for a week in Mumbai, witnessing participation of 17 states. However, Congress-ruled Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah, Tamil Nadu CM J. Jayalalithaa and Telangana chief minister K.C. Rao did not attend the event.

There were separate business summits organised for Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Telangana to showcase to the investors the states’ potentials. The respective state officials carried out the summits, but their chief ministers distanced themselves from the event.

On the other hand, BJP states and its allies, Andhra Pradesh CM N. Chandrababu Naidu, Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Gujarat CM Anandiben Patel, Jharkhand CM Raghubar Das, Chhattisgarh CM Raman Singh and Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar, pitched for their states, and sought investments.

Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who was hosting the event, however, said that all the states had received adequate space at the event. “Everyone got equal opportunity to showcase their strenghts and opportunities,” Mr Fadnavis said, concluding the session.

Even the non-representation of Northeastern states was brought to the notice of the government. Speaking on the issue, secretary, of ministry of commerce and industry Amitabh Kant said, “Every state has different potentials. Northeastern states need to be developed in a sustainable way. You cannot force every state to be industrial like Maharashtra and Gujarat. Every state has its core competency,” Mr Kant said.