Commerce ministry clears extension of industrial package

“During the course of the meeting,Sharma told me that he had already sent his recommendation to Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and the Union Finance ministry,” said Dhumal.

The chief minister clarified that there was no flight of industries from any of the neighbouring states like Haryana and Punjab,which were opposing Himachal Pradesh’s demand for the last three years.

“In fact,several leading industrial houses from Karnataka,Gujarat,Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh are in the process of setting up new units in Himachal Pradesh to derive benefits from the tax holiday here,” Dhumal said.

He added: “The package has had a positive impact on the industrial growth of the state and withdrawal of these benefits will jeopardize economic development.”

There is no reason for denying the package as the Centre has already allowed an extension for Jammu and Kashmir and the north-eastern states,all bracketed for the benefit along with Himachal in 2003,Dhumal had stated in a letter to the Prime Minister earlier.

Last month,the state Vidhan Sabha had passed a resolution to request the Centre to extend the package till 2020 to sustain uniform growth of industries in the hill state.

The package,which includes benefits like central excise waiver,capital subsidy and power traffic freeze,was sanctioned for Himachal Pradesh,Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir to attract investment in these states.

On Monday,Sharma also assured Dhumal that the ministry will help the state in setting up skill development centres in Solan and Una districts to train local youths for jobs in the private sector. The ministry will also play a proactive role in attracting investment in the food and fruit processing and the IT sector in the state.

Anand Sharma postpones visit
Union commerce minister Anand Sharma,who was slated to reach Shimla on Tuesday,for discussions with the state government on the impact of industrial development in Himachal Pradesh,has decided to postpone his visit. “The programme will be rescheduled suitably,” said an official of the Union ministry.