Hooda calls upon Indian Diaspora to become partners in sustainable and inclusive growth model of Haryana

New Delhi/Jalandhar, January 9, 2014: Haryana Chief Minister, Bhupinder Singh Hooda has called upon Indian Diaspora to become partners in the sustainable and inclusive growth model of Haryana.

Addressing the Plenary Session of 12th Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas-2014 at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi today, Hooda said that Haryana is a land of opportunity and enterprise. It already has strong industrial infrastructure, which is further being strengthened through development of new Industrial Model Townships (IMTs) and Industrial Estates and expansion of the existing Estates.

On this occasion, Union Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs, Vyalar Ravi, Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Chief Minister of Kerala, Oommen Chandy, Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narender Modi and Chief Minister of Meghalaya, Mukul Sangma were also present.  

Hooda said that Haryana has friendly industrial and investment policy and is home to a large number of multinational companies and there are more than 1,000 projects with foreign technical and financial collaboration already in the State. 87 per cent of the total investments in Haryana are from private sector, which speaks volumes about the investment climate and opportunities in the State. Comprehensive Labour Policy of the State has ensured industrial peace and harmony, giving boost to industrial growth. Power generation in the State has gone up and in the last about nine years its installed capacity has increased to over 3 times from 1,587 MW to more than 5,300 MW.

Hooda said that to encourage entrepreneurship, the base of education and technical training is being strengthened. To make ‘Education for All’ a reality, required academic and infrastructural facilities are being provided. During past 9 years, number of technical institutions in the State has gone up from 166 to 662 and intake capacity from about 28,500 to about 1,50,000 students. A State-of-the-art Rajiv Gandhi Education city has been set up in Sonipat, which will have a number of prestigious institutions in its campus. Recently, foundation stone has been laid by the Prime Minister in Jhajjar, for the establishment of Global Centre for Nuclear Partnership. The focus is on qualitative aspects of education and Haryana is going to become International Hub of Education in next 5 to 7 years, he said.

Hooda said that quality healthcare is another sector, to which the State Government is committed. Per capita expenditure on health has increased by about 300 per cent. Two new medical colleges have been opened and 2 more are being set up to give boost to medical education. National Cancer Institute at a cost of Rs 2,000 crore is being set up in Jhajjar.

Hooda said that initially Haryana was an agrarian State, but today it is one of the leading industrial States of the country, with the manufacturing and services sectors contributing about 83 per cent to the Gross State Domestic Product. Progress of any State can be assessed from four broad parameters – per capita income, per capita investment, per capita plan budget and resource mobilization and Haryana is leading on all these fronts. In addition to the industrial progress, the State has also achieved high levels of production and productivity in wheat, rice, cotton, mustard etc. and is second largest contributor of food grains to the Central Pool. To facilitate the growth of agricultural and rural economy, Haryana has also supported the FDI in retail.

Hooda said that to utilize tremendous creative energy and potential of the youth in the growth of the State, besides encouraging them to become entrepreneurs, the State has initiated a novel Sports Policy, as a result of which, sportspersons of the State have won a number of medals in various national and international events.

Inviting the Indian Diaspora to visit Haryana to see for themselves the development of State, Hooda said that the State is according special facilitation to them. Up to 10 per cent of the industrial plots have been reserved for NRIs. A Foreign Investment & NRI Cell has been created for providing guidance and advisory service and for addressing the problems faced by NRIs and PIOs relating to property, marital discord and law and order etc. 

Hooda appreciated the initiative of Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs in organising this year’s event, with special focus on issues concerning the younger generation of Indian Diaspora.

Later, in the Question-Answer Session, Hooda spoke on various aspects to boost entrepreneurship, including the emphasis on basic education and technical education. On manufacturing, Hooda said that the State is also leading in terms of manufacturing of a number of products like passenger cars, two wheelers, cranes, earthmovers, tractors, bicycles, sanitary ware etc. With the implementation of a number of initiatives under Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor project, the State will soon become a manufacturing hub. About education, Hooda said that a number of institutions of national importance are being set up in the State. Hooda particularly mentioned about the State Government’s focus on better healthcare and medical education. The State is providing free medicines to the people and wants everybody to be healthy, he said.                              

Hooda also visited the Haryana pavilion, established near the Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas-2014 site.