Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh has said his government has written to various countries which want to shift their business out of China and assured them of all possible support for setting up facilities in the state.
Singh said his government is moving aggressively to reach out to embassies of various nations and that they have set up four industrial parks for giving them land for their projects.
“We have written to Japan, Korean and Taiwanese embassies in India and we are in talks with them and offering them all possible support, in terms of land, infrastructure and other facilities,” Singh said during his Facebook Live programme ‘#AskCaptain’ on Saturday.
This comes in the midst of reports that a number of global giants, including Japanese and American companies, are looking to shift their manufacturing facilities to other countries from China in the wake of the pandemic.
India is also looking to lure US businesses, including medical devices giant Abbott Laboratories, to relocate from China as President Donald Trump’s administration stepped up efforts to blame Beijing for its role in the coronavirus pandemic.
India in April reached out to more than 1,000 companies in the US and through overseas missions to offer incentives for manufacturers seeking to move out of China, Bloomberg reported earlier in May, citing government officials.
India is prioritising medical equipment suppliers, food processing units, textiles, leather and auto part makers among more than 550 products covered in the discussions, according to officials who asked not to be identified, citing rules on speaking with the media.
India expects to win over US companies involved in healthcare products and devices, and is in talks with Medtronic Plc and Abbott Laboratories on relocating their units to the country, an official said.
India last month made prior clearance mandatory for foreign investments from countries that share a land border with India, in a move aimed at curbing “opportunistic takeovers” of Indian companies by Chinese firms following fall in their valuation due to the coronavirus-induced economic downturn.
China criticised India for the new policy and called it discriminatory and demanded its review.
Before Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh have offered concessions for those planning to move. Maharashtra has ensured that supply chains for foreign manufacturers remained functional through India’s national virus lockdown.
