Meghalaya projected to woo private investments of Rs. 8,000 crore

A CORRESPONDENT

SHILLONG: Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K. Sangma has said that the state is projected to attract substantial private investment of Rs. 8000 crore. Sangma attributed that the high investment will contribute in realizing the ambitious target of 10 billion US dollar economy.

“The investment in Meghalaya is an outcome of the new industrial policy that has created an ecosystem for ease of doing business,” he said, while addressing a workshop on “Human Development Leadership Programme” at Tura, which was attended by DCs, BDOs and other district and block level officers from the five districts of Garo Hills. 

Talking about policies that previously discouraged investors, the Chief Minister said, “The system was tedious and time consuming. Our new industrial policy has provided a framework to give clearance to different statutory requirements within a specified time frame, which is facilitating investors”.

He informed that close to Rs. 4000 crore investment has come through in the last one year, which includes a Rs. 2500 crore thermal power plant to generate 450 megawatt electricity, ethanol plant, beverages and five star hotel chains. 

On boosting IT connectivity in the state, Sangma informed that the government is in talks with Malaysian Telecom along with the Bangladesh Telecom to get the optical fibres and submarine cables from Chittagong to Shillong.

“Now when that happens we will have one of the strongest backbones in terms of optical fibres connectivity,” the Chief Minister said. The Sangma said that currently in India there is one line in Chennai and the other in Mumbai.

Submarine cables are fibre optic cables that connect countries across the world via cables laid on the ocean floor. These cables – often thousands of miles in length – are able to transmit huge amounts of data rapidly from one point to another.

A submarine cable is a fibre optic cable laid in the ocean, connecting two or more landing points. The Chief Minister also informed on the new five star hotel projects that are coming up in Shillong, Sohra and Umiam, and a three star hotel in Tura, all through private investment. He said that the hotel will promote the business environment and will provide job opportunities to the youth.

“Hotels, air connectivity, and high speed internet will encourage more IT companies to set up their enterprises in the state. The Shillong IT Park has provided jobs to more than 3000 youth directly and indirectly and many more companies have expressed their keen desire to setup BPOs in the state,” he said, while also informing on the second phase of the Shillong IT Park, which is creating space for 3000 seater, which is already confirmed by IT companies from US and European nations.

“Companies are now shifting their focus from cities like Bengaluru and Hyderabad to our state, as they know that we have the human resource and the capacity. Our people have good command over languages, and work ethics, which is an added advantage,” Sangma added.

The Chief Minister further said that the government is working with an approach to ensure economic growth with high investment in infrastructure projects. “In the last five years, the government has charted out the road map, we are making investments in different social sectors with particular focus on education, health, power and rural development,” he said.

Talking on the prioritizing intervention, he mentioned the concerns related to maternal mortality rate (223), which was high compared to the national average (113) in 2018. “Our approach to address the issue has ensured the overall well-being of mothers and children, which has also led to decline in MMR,” he added. Sangma also urged the officials to work with a purpose and clear vision to better the lives of the people, while discharging their duties.

Also Read: Meghalaya CM Conrad K. Sangma orders inquiry into poor construction of RMSA School (sentinelassam.com)

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