A 12-member delegation from Canada, which had a brainstorming session at Hotel Novotel and later went on a drive on the beach road and spent sometime at GITAM University on Saturday, expressed keen interest to explore investment opportunities in petrochemical and other sectors in the city.
“We are thrilled at the investment potential in Visakhapatnam. It’s a well-developed city with tremendous scope to achieve international status,” president of Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC) Naval Bajaj, who was part of the team, told The Hindu .
The team included Trade Commissioner (Canadian Trade Office, Hyderabad) Vikram Jain, Canadian MP Joe Daniel, Investment Attraction Manager (Saskatchewan) Raymond C. Chan, Director-Economic Development (City of Brampton) Sohail Saeed and president of Aribond Travels Abu Becker.
Minister for Investment and Infrastructure Ganta Srinivasa Rao, who received the business delegation, gave a presentation on the investment potential of the city and described about existence of huge industrial units, an international airport, two ports and readymade infrastructure.
He asked the team to invest in the Visakhapatnam-Kakinada Petroleum, Petrochemical Investment Region.
APIIC Vice-Chairman-cum-Managing Director Jayesh Ranjan explained about the progress made on developing one among four PCPIRs in the country in Andhra Pradesh.
He said they were developing infrastructure like 138-km. expressway, its connectivity with railways and highway, logistic hubs and multi-product and product specific Special Economic Zones between Visakhapatnam and Kakinada.
ICCC president Naval Bajaj said for past 37 years they were fostering bilateral ties between the two countries. He said the ICCC was the largest Diaspora organisation promoting investments in the two countries adding they released ‘India Mission 2014’ in January coinciding with Pravasi Bharatiya Divas.
Mr. Daniel said synergies in the two countries should be exploited to the optimum level with exchange of delegations and collaborative programmes.
He said ICCC had identified agriculture, energy, education and IT and infrastructure as the core sectors for investments in Tier-II cities like Visakhapatnam.
Special Chief Secretary, Tourism, Chandana Khan, CII-AP Chairman B. Ashok Reddy, ICCC AP coordinator Surya Bezawada, Secretary, Infrastructure & Investment M.T. Krishna Babu, District Collector Solomon Arokia Raj, CII-Vizag chairman G. Sambasiva Rao, MLAs M. Srinivasa Rao, Ch. Venkataramaiah and others spoke.
