Industry pins hopes on CII Partnership Summit

Visakhapatnam: The 30th edition of CII partnership summit has been creating buzz among industry circles who are hopeful of a positive outcome with the increasing support for the two day event.

The mega event is being co-hosted by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) of the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and Government of Andhra Pradesh in the city Nov. 14 and 15.

CII AP chairman G Murali Krishna said the summit is going to be a huge success as global leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs from 50 plus countries, including heads of Governments from 30 countries, are participating in the summit. Really it is a proud moment for Vizag as for the first time such a large number of international leaders are gathering in the city. He felt it was a great opportunity to showcase the infrastructure, talent pool and resources in the state particularly in Visakhapatnam. Over 400 MoUs will be signed attracting Rs. 10 lakh crore worth investments and creating 7.5 lakh jobs.

Google will be making the highest ever FDI investment of $15 million in india and Vizag will become AI hub, he said. Industry academy link was necessary to tap skilled manpower, he said and added the skill development was top agenda of the state government.

Former chairman of AP Chamber of Commerce and Industry G Sambasiva Rao said majority of the MoUs to be signed at partnership summit will be realised as the government was wetting MoUs before they are signed. As a part of infra development road widening should be taken up on top priority, he said and added that most of investors want better ease of doing business and good ecosystem.

Some stakeholders and entrepreneurs see the summit as an opportunity to reach out to global players. According to Prasad Natarajan, CEO of Pelican Valley Integrated IT Park, the two day summit is a great platform for like minded stakeholders to come together. Prasad, who is leading a four member team from Pelican Valley Integrated Tech Park at the summit, said immediately after registering for the summit he could come in contact with the 400 plus stakeholders and they would now discuss and exchange ideas during the two days summit.

Referring to Pelican Valley project, Prasad said a group of NRIs have come together to develop a dedicated IT project. They will be holding tailormade training sessions for students to make them industry ready to meet the industries' requirements in their IT park. As a part of it they will collaborate with IITs and leading institutions, he said.

Vice President of IT Association Rushikonda O Naresh Kumar said the summit will focus on infrastructure and resources available in the State. Stating that Andhra Pradesh has several advantages for making investment, he said AP ranks top in ease of doing and speed of doing business in the country. Besides it is one of fastest growing investment hubs in India, he said. Two basic requirements for establishing industries were power and water, he said. AP will meet both the requirements for investors. There will be power surplus due to major green energy projects in the state. There will be no dearth of water after completion of the Polavaram project, he said. The partnership summit will definitely accelerate the growth trajectory of Andhra Pradesh, he said.