Andhra Pradesh Food Processing Society CEO Y.S. Prasad has said over 70% of the projects for which 462 MoUs were signed in the past three years for investment in the food processing sector have been grounded.
Mr. Prasad, who was here to interact with prospective investors, told The Hindu that as on date, 236 projects listed under the green category had been grounded envisaging an investment of ₹10,000 crore.
Work on 206 projects had been completed, he added. The number of proposals received for investment was to the tune of over ₹15,000 crore.
‘Investor-friendly’
The decision to reduce tax for non-agricultural land, instruct banks to simplify procedures for sanction of loan, and hand over land within 21 days of possession would further give a fillip to investment in the food processing sector and infrastructure projects such as cold chains and warehousing, he said.
Mr. Prasad said they had tied up with banks to sanction at least 10% of loan sought by the entrepreneurs within a fixed time-frame to facilitate grounding of more projects.
Quick clearances
As part of the Ease Of Doing Business (EODB), they had appointed escort officers to track down the status of the projects on real-time basis. Clearances were being given within 21 days of receiving all the relevant information on the investment proposals.
After the formation of Sunrise Andhra Pradesh, a separate department had been created for the sector by separating it from the Industries Department.
“We are offering a slew of incentives to the investors and our policy is considered as the best in India,” he said.
Incentives offered by Telangana were not much compared to A.P., he pointed out.
‘Opportunities galore’
Stating that there were a plethora of opportunities in North Andhra and the East Godavari district for investment in food processing industries by using millets, coconut, pineapple and jackfruit, he said the government was keen on establishing food parks at various places to strengthen the rural economy and create jobs for the unemployed.
He said they were seeking investments in banana, coir, tamarind, papaya and other value-added ventures in addition to improving cold chain and other infrastructure required to boost the food processing sector in the State.
