Punjab: Industrialists threaten to shift expansion projects

Punjab: Industrialists and entrepreneurs from the Malwa region have expressed disappointment over the alleged apathy of the Punjab and Central governments towards their legitimate demands at the end of the year. They have warned that they will shift their planned expansion projects to more industry-friendly states if their long-standing grievances are not addressed immediately. The key issues raised include frequent road blockades by agitators, including the Kisan Morcha, high power tariffs, unstable and ambiguous taxation policy under GST and cumbersome procedural hurdles in securing land use (CLU) permits, licences and administrative clearances for setting up new units. They argue that these factors have, among other things, severely disrupted business operations. “Frequent blockades of national highways due to faulty policies of the government have isolated our region, pushing us out of an already competitive market,” said local industrialists.

They also pointed out that transporters have increased fares due to diverted routes, affecting logistics. District Industrial Chamber president Sajeev Sood and vice-president Kitty Chopra, along with state-level leader Ghanshyam Kansal, regretted that the current governments, like their predecessors, have forced entrepreneurs to abandon their expansion plans in favour of more favourable environments in states like Haryana and Rajasthan. The industrialists have urged the government to address key issues including setting up of modern industrial hubs, connecting the city with gas pipelines, liberalising CLU conditions, simplifying expansion approval processes, implementing consumer-friendly power supply policies, providing concessions for key industrial areas and resolving ambiguities in the changing taxation system. The entrepreneurs argue that neglect of small-scale and cottage industries has led to the closure of many industrial units in the last few years. They had hoped that the previous central government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi would prompt the Punjab government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to streamline the process of CLU and other administrative clearances. However, they claim that the situation has worsened under both the central and state governments.