While praising the State government’s initiatives to untie the procedural knots that strangle investments and develop Kerala into an industrial hub, delegates to the Loka Kerala Sabha have underscored the need to take the new economy message to a greater number of Non-resident Keralites (NoRKs) all over the world.
Participants in the session on industry and IT were generally of the view that the State government should do more to spread awareness of the ease of doing business in Kerala and the steps it had set in motion to cut red tape and create an investor-friendly milieu. Some of them were sceptical about the attitude of the bureaucracy towards NRI investors and pointed out that a section of the bureaucrats still tended to treat them as enemies and were not keen on granting timely clearances.
About 60 delegates who registered at the session were given a minute each to speak their views. Industries Minister A.C. Moideen asked them to submit their proposals in writing to the government. While the government’s decisions to have a single window clearance system in place, formation of a high-level committee to redress grievances and efforts to limit the number of licences to the bare minimum came in for wide appreciation, the dominant feeling was that all such steps needed to be translated into practice to achieve tangible results.
Instances of countries such as Germany issuing life-long business licences to potential investors in five minutes were cited to drive home the point. The manner in which solid waste management had been developed into an industry in Germany evoked much interest. The speakers also wanted reduction in the procedures for sanction of loans. One key concern aired by many of the participants related to the impact that Artificial Intelligence (AI) would have on the working population from Kerala in the coming decades. The State government, they felt, should frame its policies anticipating such possibilities. Huge establishments that engaged hundreds of employees were now being run by one or two robots, it was pointed out.
Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) managing director M. Beena pointed out that the State had several strengths in the industrial sphere and cited areas that awaited investments.
