Context:

• The state government of Himachal Pradesh has announced policy initiatives to boost investment in the state which is an essential pre requisite to increase the pace of economic progress.

Key Points:

• Taking active steps in the direction, the state Industries Minister has announced that the existing single window clearance system in the state would be overhauled and instead, would be replaced with a new authority that would get all clearances for investors in a time-bound manner. A significant feature of the new initiative is that this new authority will be endowed with a legal status. As per the state government’s plans, the new authority will be constituted through an Act in the Vidhan Sabha.
• In this regard, the state government has pointed out that the existing single window clearance system hasn’t yielded desired results and has failed to live up to the expectations of the time and age. The state has received only Rs 13,000 crore investment against Rs 1.25 lakh MoUs signed by the previous government in the Global Investors meet and groundbreaking ceremonies.
• In order to set the things in order, the state government would shortly replace the single window clearance system with an authority having legal status to facilitate investment. In this regard, it has further been highlighted that investment proposals worth around Rs 10,000 crore are currently pending in the absence of permission under Section 118. In order to solve such issues, the single window clearance system would be replaced with an authority that would get all clearances for investors in a time-bound manner. Plus, this authority will have a legal status. It will be constituted through an Act in the Vidhan Sabha in the upcoming Budget Session.
• Further, as part of its comprehensive policy, the state government is trying to enhance its land bank to facilitate investment. In this regard, the authorities have identified land in Kangra for IT companies. The government is now actively looking for the big IT companies to invest in the state. Besides, the government will soon appoint an international consultant for the bulk drug park project in Una. The work on the medical devices park project in Nalagarh has already started and the administration is being pressed to complete these projects as soon as possible.