Come to Mumbai, CM tells American investors

MUMBAI: Even as rain lashed Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra, Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh was doing a hardsell of the state as an investment destination to American investors.

In fact, while the rail and bus services were grinding to a complete halt, he was promising Americans he will clean up Mumbai and make it more attractive to stay and do business in.

He is accompanied by Minister for Industries Ashok Chavan, senior officials and a group of prominent industrialists during his trip to Seattle, New York, Los Angeles and Chicago. 

Deshmukh highlighted Maharashtra’s advantages as a foreign direct investment (FDI) destination. He said the state was growing at a rate faster than the national growth rate of over 9 per cent.

Discussions centred on the infrastructure gaps in India, particularly in Maharashtra, and the action being taken by the government to bridge the gaps. Deshmukh and his team held meetings with Starbucks, Microsoft and Boeing officials in Seattle. The chief minister and his team will travel to Los Angeles on Sunday, after which they will visit Chicago.