The three-day international business summit at Agra which ended on Tuesday has excited the Akhilesh Yadav government and sparked hope for a crucial boost to industrialisation in Uttar Pradesh. The event organised by CII and the Union commerce and industry ministry was attended by over 1,000 business representatives from 46 countries.
“Our biggest achievement at the summit was that we were able to convince business leaders from India and abroad that UP is changing fast and we have the right atmosphere for investment aimed at development,” says UP chief secretary Javed Usmani. “The industrialists were also as curious about our new sector-specific policies. I saw a lot of interest among them for investment opportunities in UP,” he added.
Industry department officers say Akhilesh Yadav’s friendly approach and comfort level with the captains of industry and corporate honchos helped in promoting UP as an investment destination. Akhilesh, in fact, stayed at the summit for two days and is reported to have gone out of his way to meet business leaders and convince them to come to UP.
A senior department officer pointed out the statement by US India Business Council president Ron Somers that Americans are coming to UP. “American firms are keenly interested in investing in UP’s agri processing sector and power sector, considering the potential & opportunities,” Somers said.
