The Bangalore: May be an attempt to divert attention from the 2002 communal bloodshed that claimed 2,000 lives in Gujarat, Chief Minister Narendra Modi's idea of an investment summit has turned out to be a real success for the state, making it a favourable corporate destination.
Ever since its start in 2003, the "Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors Summit" has been attracting large investment proposals from domestic and foreign companies, and the figures kept multiplying since then.
The first summit, in the year 2003, attracted proposals worth 66,068 crore. Two years later, the figure went up to 1 lakh crore during the second summit. In 2007, the third edition of the summit attracted 4.6 lakh crore, while it was 12.44 lakh crore during the fourth edition in 2009.
This year, the summit attracted even bigger investment proposals, adding up to 20,83,000 crore ($462 billion), or one-third of the country's GDP. As Modi said, there are 7,936 memoranda of understanding (MOUs) signed and it has been expected to generate employment opportunities for 5.2 million people.
The big-ticket investments during the current summit were made by Adani Group, Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group and Essar Group.
Leading the investor's pack, Gautam Adani-lead Adani Group announced 80,000 crore investments in ports, power sector and infrastructure in Gujarat. Then comes the Reliance Group with an investment of 50,000 crore in the state in the next 5-7 years on various projects in power and cement.
Diversified conglomerate Essar Group, which is a major player in the port sector in Gujarat, has made the third largest investment worth 30,000 crore for projects in various sectors, including power and refinery.
There are other big names in the list of major investments. Engineering and construction giant Larsen & Toubro also committed an investment of 15,000 crore in the state on infrastructure projects, while infrastructure major Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) also said it will invest 12,000 crore to develop a renewable energy park in the state. Farm equipment-to-software group Mahindra & Mahindra also signed 6 MOUs to invest 3,000 crore to step up presence in the hospitality and real estate sectors in the state.
According to Modi, the maximum investment promises had come from the infrastructure sector. As per official sources, 655 MOUs had been signed in the urban development and infrastructure sector with investment promises worth 2,26,000 crore. The health and pharma sector also witnessed whooping investment of 26,000 crore through 127 MOUs.
So what would you call Narendra Modi, the man behind this? The change agent of the decade, as business tycoons like Ratan Tata and Ambani brothers praised him? Well, it will depend on the implementation and outcomes of all these projects.
But one thing is clear that Gujarat has been endorsed by the Industry captains as the country's premier investment destination. Other states like Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh are also in the same track following the "Vibrant Gujarat" model. Will it be a key element in Modi's image makeover from a strict follower of 'Hindutva' to a state CEO? Let's wait and watch.
