Bihar govt offers lucrative package to apparel industry

Shivani Bhakoo

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, January 8

To provide enough business opportunities, the Bihar Government seems to be leaving no stone unturned to attract the investors from Punjab, especially those dealing in textiles, apparel, dyeing industry from Ludhiana.

The Bihar government is offering huge incentives, better infrastructure to the industrialists to set-up manufacturing units in Bihar.

A delegation of exporters, the industrialists dealing in textile/ apparel industry, dyeing industry is on a tour to the state.

The delegation members, including president of Knitwear and Apparel Exporters Organisers’, Harish K Dua, had a meeting with the Principal Secretary, Department of Industry— S Sidhartha— and Bihar Industrial Development Authority Managing Director— RS Srivastva— and with other senior officials.

While the Bihar government wants to provide job opportunities to its population, the industrialists from Ludhiana said they were offered good infrastructure, reasonable power tariff, enough labour and subsidies which were the basics for any industry to flourish.

Talking to The Tribune, Harish Dua, said Bihar Government was ready to provide us prime location on a highway. “They are ready to provide us power up to Rs5 per unit. Not just that, the Bihar government has offered to set up common effluent treatment plants and sewerage treatment plant. We will have to provide them just the maintenance cost, once they are installed. Besides, fire station, hospital, schools - whichever facilities are viable, they are ready to give us”, said Dua.

At the same time, Dua said the Punjab government had still not formulated any policy but a delegation will soon meet higher-ups in Punjab for further expansions, if state government showed eagerness.

If the Bihar government is successful in luring industrialists from here, it will be able to generate employment to approximately 20,000 population (textile workers).

These knitwear and apparel manufacturers cater to a large number of brands and retail companies such as Spencer’’s Retail, Walmart, GAP and designers in France, Germany, US and other developed countries.