Invest Karnataka – The state of investment, innovation, and entrepreneurship

The Invest Karnataka 2016 global investors meet saw a conglomeration of industrialists, entrepreneurs, and government officials. Arun Jaitley, Union Minister of Finance, said that Karnataka has the natural advantage of resources, great human resources, and entrepreneurial talent.

"I believe with all of these advantages, Karnataka has the capacity to grow two per cent more than the country's economic growth," adds Arun Jaitley. Speaking in the same vein, Venkaiah Naidu, Centre's Minister for Urban Development, said that Karnataka works with an advantage and has the complete support of the centre.

The idea of inviting investors from across the globe, the state, and the centre aims to deplete poverty in the country. R V Deshpande, Karnataka’s Industry Minister, added that Invest Karnataka is not about MoUs. It is a meeting point for investors.

However, there is a growing need for infrastructure to ensure the growth of the state. At the inauguration of Invest Karnataka, Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister of Transport, promised one lakh crore for road development in the state. Also speaking about the problem of traffic congestion, Nitin Gadkari added that the centre and state are working closely to ensure all the problems are solved soon.

"We are the future of India. We are investment leaders in steel, agriculture, technical, medical, startups, and manufacturing," said R V Deshpande. Karnataka pioneered investment programmes in the country way back in 2000. "We will support Make in India and push it," added RV Deshpande.

There are over 300 exhibitors present, and more than 140 projects with DPRs are on websites. Adding to this Arun Jaitley said that startups grow naturally in India and has shown great potential in aerospace. He also added that there needs to be a focus on building more manufacturing setups in the country.

Initiatives in the chemical sector will soon be seen in the state. Apart from that there also needs to be focus on the agricultural sector of the state. Ananth Kumar, Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers, has promised a 13 lakh metric tonne fertiliser plant in the state. Both the central and state ministers jointly invited global investors to invest in Karnataka.

Karnataka is no doubt seen unprecedented growth, however, the focus by far has primarily been on the IT sector. With the Invest Karnataka initiative, there is now going to be a stronger focus on manufacturing and agricultural industry. There will also be a focus on plastic technology in Karnataka.