The perception that Bihar is off limits for industry is passe now, according to the Minister for Industry in the State, Shahnawaz Hussain
The list of participants at the Bihar Investors Meet in Delhi on May 12 made a very impressive reading indeed- Adani, ITC, HUL, Coca Cola, Amazon, Flipkart, Samsung, Amul, Britania Industries, Usha Martin, Honda, L&T, Arvind Mills, TATA Bluescope, Shree Cement, Ambuja Cement, to name a few. Presence of M A Yusuf Ali, Chairman, LuLu group International from Dubai, was the icing on the cake. ITC Chairman Sanjiv Puri and many other notable industry biggies embellished the occasion.
The man of the moment, Bihar Minister for Industry Shahnawaz Hussain, said things which even diehard Biharis will find tough to stomach. He went on to declare that Bihar is now the most favoured investment destination in the country. The perception that Bihar is off limits for industry is passe now, the minister asserted claiming that the perception particularly changed quickly after he took up the reins.
Those who used to say that when it comes to industry Bihar was not even worth a needle must be rubbing their eyes in disbelief after watching the milestone that the Investors Meet turned out to be, he said. "I am going to take the road shows to Mumbai, Surat and other cities of the country including Patna, and even to Dubai. The grand success of Investors Meet is symptomatic of the fact that the perception has unmistakably changed and Industrialization of the state is a fait accompli, the beginning of which is marked by establishment of first ever ethanol plant and Pepsi's bottling plant."
Mega Food Park, Mega Textile Park, Mega Leather Park, IT Park, Ethanol Plants and youth from all over India seeking jobs in Bihar et al-- the promises that Hussain portrayed seemed so unreal.But you cannot fault Mr Hussain for dreaming. No one did. Despite not believing what he dreamt, people had glowing words for his efforts and his chasing of gold at the end of the rainbow. It is said if you can dream it, you can do it - in the light of this saying all wished him all the best.
As for political stability, a sine qua non for industry, the minister said that there are no ifs and buts about the continuation of Nitish Kumar-led NDA government in Bihar till 2025. Like an oracle he gushed - "Listen to my prediction, the day is bound to come when youth from other states will come to Bihar for jobs".
Though showering profuse praise on Shahnawaz Hussain for showing the nerve and determination to embark on the perilous path, Doubting Thomases as ever are dubbing it as nothing but "jumlas." His claim of change in perception about Bihar among investors had few taker sin the media and he had to evade questions regarding it. The fact is there has been non-existent growth in industry in Bihar in the last 30 years, export being less than 1 percent.
Not to talk of others, even Neeraj Kumar, State President, Commerce Cell of Bihar BJP and MD, Asian Pharmaceutical Ltd, refused to buy Hussain's optimism. Talking to this writer, Kumar said that in a state where a single road takes at least 10 years to be built, industrialization is at best a leap of faith.
Acquisition of land fragmented into small holdings will be the greatest hurdle. Illustrious peasant leaders of yore Swami Sahajanand Saraswati and Sir Ganesh Dutta had tried to consolidate the land but their efforts were frustrated by the erstwhile govt which fragmented big chunks of land into small acreages and distributed among people on caste lines.
Today, thousands of farmers will have to be aggregated for land for single industry.The question of law and order is forever an intimidating one.
But Hussain found a cheer leader in Ajay Kumar, a renowned Urologist in Patna and former president of Indian Medical Association (IMA). He said Hussain is sincere in his intent and has raised hopes of industries dawning on Bihar. He advised Hussain to put his energy in roping in Bihar owned pharmaceutical honchos and bring them home for investing in the state. If only Bihari pharmaceutical honchos producing medicines outside come to state to manufacture, the state would turn into a pharma hub in no time. Over 120 Bihari pharma leaders, many of them majors, manufacture medicines outside Bihar. The irony is that Biharis are the biggest consumer of medicines but strangely enough not a single pharma company representative made it to the Investors Meet. Hussain made a fervent appeal to them in their absentia to come home to invest.
Unwittingly echoing Chief minister Nitish Kumar, Shahnawaz himself dubbed industrialization of the state as impossible when he said that his party always assigns him impossible tasks and he was never found wanting. Nitish Kumar not long ago said without pretence that Bihar being landlocked is unfit for industrialization.
Hussain said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has mandated him to pull out all stops to bring industries to Bihar and he has his full blessings. The ethanol plant has been a dream of Modi and Bihar emerged as the first state to take it up. Textile and leather policies are in the offing and once they are in place, investment proposals will pour in. Food Park, Mega Textile Park, Logistic Park, leather parks are in the pipeline.
MOUs are flaunted in any Investors' meet but they were conspicuous by near absence. Hussain rationalised it by saying that the meet was organised just to fathom the interests of industrialist. The interest they evinced was palpable. Hussains goodwill in the media was equally palpable which spared him many blushes. The rough edges around gaps in Investors Meet were safely put on the back burner. Questions around CM Nitish Kumar could have queered the pitch. The absence of Nitish Kumar itself was tricky issue.
However, Hussain must be given credit for creating buzz around an issue which has always been a no go in Bihar. Making a spectacle of over 170 companies out of which 30 were majors in different domains is not a mean achievement. It certainly speaks a volume about Hussain's capability create event and must have raised his stock among BJP leaders. But he should also hedge his bets as such shows might have triggered his detractors in the party into action. To his credit,the prohibition questiondid not rear its head.
Giving it a reel touch, Hussain said the era of Prakash Jha's famous Gangajal had unarguably been replaced by that of Good Newz, a recent hit film about treatment of infertility through assisted birthing technology IVF (In Vitro Fertilization) meaning out of womb. The resemblance is spot on as the Investors Meet to turn the industrially sterile Bihar into a manufacturing hub was also held in Delhi, i.e., outside Bihar.The venue itself was pregnant with meaning.
(The writer is a journalist who has served for long in Bihar. The views expressed are personal.)
