The first 15 years for a state with immense potential, given its rich mineral resources, have not been as speedy as expected, thanks to political instability and bureaucratic hurdles. Raghubar Das, Jharkhand’s 10th CM in 15 years, tells Kumar Akash & Bhaswar Kumar about the initiatives taken to improve business environment.

Jharkhand is known for its rich mineral resources. How do you plan to tap this bounty for the state’s development?

Initially, effective use of rich mineral resources for the state’s development proved a challenge; proper planning and strategy were required. So, we set up a team to focus on industrialisation of the state. Things have been made easier for entrepreneurs through a single-window portal for investments and setting up of industry, among other things.

Jharkhand has so far received Rs 320.84 crore from coal block allocations. What could be the long-term benefits for the state? How will these funds be used? How do you see the new allocation policy vis-a-vis the previous mechanism?

We have entered into an agreement with the Union Railway Ministry and Coal India for developing two railway lines and 10 new sidings in the command area of Central Coalfields Ltd, to facilitate movement of people and freight. For this, we have formed a joint venture (JV) with the Centre; the state government owns a minority stake of 10 per cent in the JV.

Besides, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) has been signed with National Mineral Development Corporation for proposed mega steel plants in the state. The coal companies in Jharkhand have been told to spend half their mandatory two per cent corporate-social responsibility (CSR) spending on our recommendation. These funds will be used for uplift of the deprived classes.

We are hopeful that the new allocation would, with fair practice, bring revenue and jobs.

Your state has a large number of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) but not many large industries for them to feed. How do you plan to improve this?

The state is banking on the concept of ‘Make in Jharkhand’. Under this, even as we welcome big corporate houses to the state, our focus is on strengthening the MSMEs to fortify the rural belt. Under the Jharkhand industrial policy, large public and private industries are directed to prefer local small-scale industries for sourcing raw materials. For greater facilitation, bi-monthly meetings among MSMEs and corporate heads are to be organised. MSMEs are being advised to focus on quality, to suit the needs of quality-conscious industries.

Source: Business Standard