A few days ago, after Japan announced incentives of its companies to move their manufacturing units out of China, Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath directed the bureaucrats to prepare a special package which could be offered to these companies, in addition to the existing benefits.
Yogi Adityanath was the first CM in the country who announced that the state government would incentivize the companies moving production units from China to Uttar Pradesh. Many companies from other countries like the United States, South Korea, and few other countries are also planning to moving manufacturing units out of China, and Yogi Government is making efforts to capitalize on the opportunity. And, it seems, the efforts have started paying off.
As per a report by Business Standard, Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) chairman Yongmaan Park has talked to Uttar Pradesh export minister Sidharth Nath Singh about the Korean electronics makers keen on investing in Yogi-led Uttar Pradesh. KCCI, a public legal entity in Korea, is the oldest and largest business organization in Korea, and represents more than 18,000 companies across sectors.
The commitment by Korean electronics maker is a big boon for Yogi government in Uttar Pradesh, which is ready to amend the existing industrial policies to attract investment in the state. KCCI is among the most respected business lobby groups in the world, and if the organization is ready to work with Yogi government, it would improve the image of the state as an investment hub.
“The central and UP governments are collectively working towards bringing the domestic industrial sector back on track. The Yogi Adityanath government is all for making the state policies more amenable for industries to lessen the impact of COVID-19,” said export minister Singh.
Uttar Pradesh has the existing capacity to replace China as a ‘factory of the world’ with a population of 22 crore and a young demography. However, the state has not had an investment-friendly government, comparable to the rule under Yogi, in the last few years.
The Akhilesh Yadav government projected itself as investment-friendly and tried to attract investment but the first thing the companies seek to start and project in a particular region is- rule of law. In the Akhilesh Yadav government, Uttar Pradesh has registered a huge increase in crime against industrialists and rich people. The leaders of the Samajwadi Party used to extort money from industrialists in the name protection and party fund, and many were killed in daylight because they refused to contribute. And therefore, the industrialists were scared to invest in the state.
However, after Yogi Government came to power, the first thing to get fixed was the policing system. The government made good investments in policing and increased the budget by double digits. With the investment in policing and political backing, many encounters of the criminals were carried out and the corrupt leaders who extorted money from industrialists were put behind bars.
Now, Uttar Pradesh is one of the most efficiently administered parts of the country, and the ‘rule of law’ prevails in the state. Therefore, the industrialists have no qualms over-investing in the state, which is not just being governed efficiently but the government is also providing various incentives for investment.
Last month, the bureaucrats started identifying the corporations based out of Japan, South Korea, USA, European Union, etc, and are formulating a strategy to woo them.
The US and South Korea have already responded. Last week, Yogi government officials held a webinar with 100 US firms in which many leading names like Adobe, Boston Scientific, UPS, etc. participated.
Speaking to HT, the state cabinet minister Siddharth Nath Singh said, “The US has a significant investment in China. Prime Minister and Chief Minister want to use the opportunity where industries are moving out of China and see how they can be brought to India, especially to UP. Video-conferencing was held with over 100 American companies yesterday, in a webinar. They’ve shown interest.”
And now South Korean electronics manufacturers are ready to invest and move their factories to Uttar Pradesh from China. It seems that country after country is rushing to shift their factories to Uttar Pradesh, given the availability of cheap labor, a strong pro-active government, and investment-friendly policies.
The Yogi government has organized various investor summits and expos in the last few years to attract private investment. And these events have been quite successful, with the promise of investment worth 4.68 lakh crore rupees in UP Investor summit and more than 70,000 crore rupees in the defense expo organized a few months ago.
While a proactive CM like Yogi Adityanath whilst taking a cue from PM Modi’s call is looking to influx the state with foreign companies’ investments–even in the wake of a deadly pandemic, then there is a CM like Nitish Kumar.
Forget trying to woo any company to the state’s backyard, the leader has not even shown any sort of urgency and imagination like CM Yogi to make the best of such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Both Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have similar geography and a similar set of obstacles but in the end, it all boils down to the leadership and if it is willing to take the gambit to uplift the state and its people from the trench of uncertainty and poverty. While one is coming out with flying colors, the other is plunging the state into misery year after year.
The Yogi government must be applauded for transforming the state from nightmare for industrialists to heaven for law-abiding companies. We are hopeful that his untiring efforts for the state might soon bear fruits.