Kerala has emerged as the only State to record a positive growth in terms of receiving Industrial Entrepreneurs’ Memorandum (IEM) proposals during 2012-14, according to an Assocham study.

The growth was about 315 per cent during the period compared to 2009-11, while the figure had seen a decline of over 65 per cent in the country, the study titled ‘Realising economic growth potential in Kerala’ said.

Kerala received IEM proposals worth over  Rs 17,600 crore, which is just about one per cent of the  Rs 15 lakh crore IEMs received across the country. The State also attracted outstanding investments worth about  Rs 3 lakh crore accounting for just about two per cent of the total outstanding investments worth  Rs 157 lakh crore attracted by States as of 2014-15.

The services sector (other than financial) accounted for largest share of 54.5 per cent in total outstanding investment attracted by Kerala followed by manufacturing (27.5 per cent), real estate and construction (eight per cent) and electricity (7.5 per cent).

The investments attracted by Kerala have grown at a CAGR of over 13 per cent during the course of past decade between 2004-05 and 2014-15, said DS Rawat, Secretary General of Assocham.

Projects worth about 54 per cent of total investments have remained non-starters as of 2014-15, said the study.

Assocham suggested focusing on improving physical infrastructure such as access roads and power supply to improve industrial productivity and competitiveness, especially in MSMEs that jointly employ over 33 lakh people.

Kerala should also create new employment opportunities by partnering with private sector to realise the objective of robust economic growth and promote agriculture and food processing industry, tourism, textile, rubber, and other such sectors. Besides, it is also required to provide training to farmers and producers to improve quantity, quality and promote usage of new technologies in farming sector, it said.

Ensuring timely implementation of projects by providing licence and clearance from concerned departments in a stipulated timeframe and rehabilitation of sick industrial units are other suggestions made by the study.

Source: Business Line