Vibrant Gujarat 09 to revolve around employment Modi

In a marked shift from the previous Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors Summits (VGGIS), which revolved around investments, the focus of next year's summit will be employment generation.

Giving clear indications that the upcoming Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors Summit 2009 will not revolve around just Memoranda of Understanding (MoU)s and investment figures, chief minister Narendra Modi said the summit, which saw a pledged investment of Rs 4.66 lakh crore in 2007, will focus on employment generation and Human Development Index (HDI).

Modi, in an exclusive interview to Business Standard, said next year's summit will be high on employment generation.

"We have created a situation where we do not need to market Gujarat as an investment destination. We have put the state in an auto-pilot mode when it comes to attracting investments. American Consulate has been directing investors to Gujarat. We have created this benchmark for the state. This time it will be HDI and employment," he said.

The previous three VGGIS held in 2003, 2005 and 2007 have seen MoUs worth Rs 6.34 lakh crore. "Our focus now is to generate employment. This cannot be done without investment inflow. But we want to implement the projects where MoUs have been signed till date. Also, we want to create social infrastructure to cope up with the investment inflow," he said.

The government has focused on creating social infrastructure—healthcare, education, drinking water.

"This is directly related to economic development. The Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor too shall help the state in a big way. While 40 per cent of the geographical area of Gujarat falls under the project, we intend to cover an additional 150 kms. This means around 60 per cent of the project falls under the DMIC," he said adding that these areas will see infrastructure upgradation matching global standards.

The region will have logistics hubs, Special Investment Regions and Special Economic Zones. "New labour-intensive industries such as logistics will thrive along the corridor," he said.

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Vibrant Gujarat 09 to revolve around employment Modi