Soon after the high-profile Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors’ Summit, the opposition Congress’s leaders called Modi’s claims as political lies to improve his image.
Soon after the high-profile Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors’ Summit, where leading lights of India Inc endorsed Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi’s projected achievements, the opposition Congress’s leaders addressed the media calling Modi’s claims as political lies to improve his image and wipe off the stains of 2002 communal riots.
Congress countered the investment claims presented by Modi as mere pieces of paper, which have absolutely no legal binding. Quoting the Union ministry of industry and commerce’s figures of industrial entrepreneurs memorandum (IEM) – the first legally binding step towards investing in the state – the opposition party claimed only 45% of the investment claims of last three VGGIS have reached even this first step, which is again several steps from actual implementation.
Filing an IEM is mandatory for all parties wishing to set up industrial units in any state for various permissions required. An industrial unit cannot be set up in any state without the knowledge of the Centre.
Giving a wider perspective, senior Congress leaders explained the paradoxical clincher.
The amount of IEMs from Gujarat, registered with the ministry of commerce between January 2003 and December 2007 has been pegged at Rs2,89,393 crore. It can be amusing to note that this is merely Rs10,000 crore more than Orissa’s Rs2,78,719 crore, which did not spend any money on hosting global investors’ summit!
“Orissa is one of the country’s most ‘underdeveloped’ state, devoid of any ‘infrastructural’ facilities that Gujarat provides. Information about the actual amount of money spent on Vibrant summits is not available, but it is obvious that the amount is certainly very astronomical. If Orissa can also get similar investments, without spending a penny on marketing itself, what really is the achievement of the Modi government, after spending crores and crores of taxpayers’ money?” said Congress’s Sabarkantha MP, Madhusudan Mistry. Further, filing an IEM is still only the first, but mandatory step towards implementing the project. The ministry’s latest data on the number of projects actually implemented since as far back as August 1991 to December ‘07 (which includes almost a decade of non-BJP rule) is worth only Rs 78,062 crore, and employment has been given to about 1.8 lakh persons.
Veteran leader and Modi’s arch rival Shankersinh Vaghela of Congress countered with official data. “According to official data of employment, at least eight lakh literate youth in Gujarat are unemployed; the unofficial figure is upwards of 40 lakh. In Vibrant Gujarat, we are talking about nearly 50 lakh skilled youth being unemployed. The Modi government has not created even 2.5 lakh new jobs, only promises of jobs in excess of 80 lakh. Sixty thousand small and medium industrial units have shut down because of recession, rendering about two lakh unemployed,” he said.
Congress’s long-standing argument against Vibrant Gujarat summits has been that industrialists invest in a region because of its overall business-friendly society, not its political leadership. “Gujarat has traditionally been the ideal land for investments long before Modi was even born. The state is inherently blessed with a long coastline and friendly social and entrepreneurial environment,’ says leader of Opposition in Assembly Shaktisinh Gohil.
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