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Karnataka gears up to generate millions of jobs

Fakir Chand in Bangalore

The pro-IT Karnataka government has started looking seriously at the old economy in a bid to revive the declining industrial activity across the state and generate millions of jobs for the educated unemployed youth.

In the backdrop of the new industrial policy that was unleashed early this week, state minister for large and medium industries R V Deshpande told rediff.com here on Thursday that the government was pulling all stops to create employment avenues during the next 10 years.

"We are estimating an investment of Rs 20 billion per annum in the industrial sector in the current decade to generate at least 150,000 jobs per year in the state for the unemployed youth, besides the skilled and unskilled labor.

It is not only in the infotech or biotechnology sectors of the new economy that the government was concentrating, but also in the traditional areas of manufacturing, agro-food processing, small and medium industries, and ancillary units for the overall development of the state," Deshpande claimed.

Admitting that the slowdown in the Indian economy as part of the global phenomenon was having a cascading effect on the state's industrial activity, Deshpande said the government would be creating infrastructure facilities across the state with Rs 12-billion World Bank assistance.

"For uniform growth, the policy envisages decongestion of the existing industrial areas and fanning out of industries, including SSIs to remote and backward regions of the state so that the migration of unemployed youth from rural and backward areas could be kept under check," Deshpande stated.

While thousands of jobs in the labor sector are likely to be generated by several infrastructure projects, being taken up with majority participation from the private sector, the educated youth and the unemployed with vocational skills will be absorbed by new industries coming up in various economic zones or parks, endowed with natural resources and amenities.

To accelerate industrial development for achieving an economic growth rate of 8-9 per cent over the next decade, procedures will be simplified and speedy clearances will be given through single-window agency.

The state industry and commerce departments will work out various incentives to promote employment generation in the backward areas and small-scale sector.

The state-owned Karnataka Industrial and Development Board will act as a nodal agency for developing sector specific and location specific parks in the areas of agro-food processing, apparel, automobiles, tourism, and tiny and small-scale units.

"For instance, 75 per cent of procurement and purchase of industrial materials by government agencies will be reserved to small and medium enterprises located in Karnataka through the usual tender process. The price preference will ensure that only those units and industries operating in the state get benefited to retain jobs and utilise resources optimally," Deshpande said.

As part of human resource development, the state will revitalize training institutions and upgradation of skills in collaboration with foreign countries.

Besides strengthening the center for entrepreneurship development, the government will also set up rural development and self-employment training institutes across the state.

Three centers of excellence in microelectronics, engineering, and innovations are being set up in Bangalore, Mangalore, and Hubli-Dharwad.

For deregulating the business environment in the state, a comprehensive Industries Promotion Act, 2001 will be enacted soon.

Agro-food industries parks will be set up at Malur, Mandya, Bagalkot, Chitradurga, and Belgaum; export promotion industrial parks in Bangalore and Mangalore; auto parks at Dharward and Shimoga; chemical industrial park and jewellery park in Uttar Kannada; apparel parks at Bellar and Tumkur, and special economic zones at Hassan.

Deshpande also disclosed that the energy and industries department officials were working out a scheme to give relief to SSI on power tariff, which have been increased by over 200 per cent after the recent revision of energy rates.

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