Skilled workforce, conducive business environment attracting textile, apparel industries to Odisha

Bhubaneswar (Odisha) [India], October 26 : Skilled workforce, conducive business environment are attracting textile and apparel industries to Odisha, the Odisha government said on Monday.
A national-level seminar on "Making Odisha the Textiles Hub of the East" was organized by the Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of Odisha (IPICOL) at the convention hall, Lok Sewa Bhavan in Bhubaneswar on Monday.
Welcoming the gathering, Principal Secretary of Industries, Government Of Odisha Hemant Sharma highlighted the recent growth of the state primarily driven by the push towards industrial growth.
As per the release by the Odisha government, he also elaborated the strong driving factors of Odisha making it the manufacturing hub of the East such as the strategic location of Odisha in the ASEAN region, the industrial infrastructure, highly skilled manpower and especially the proactive governance.
Stressing on the Industry readiness of Odisha, Minister Industries, MSME, Energy and Home, Government of Odisha Captain Dibya Shankar Mishra said, "We have more than 1.5 lakh acres of land, ready to be used by the industries coming down to Odisha. "Not only in recent times, but Odisha also has a long history in textile and global trading," Mishra said.
He further added, "It is in this regard that our Government has prioritized this sector and is seeking mega-investments from major textiles and apparel players. The Government of Odisha is in discussions over a special incentive package for mega investments in the Textiles and Apparel including Technical Textiles Sector. I would like to make an appeal to industry leaders across India to come and visit Odisha and we are here to support you."
Addressing the gathering, Upendra Prasad Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India elaborated the new schemes of the Central Government and pointed out the areas where India based industries can focus on to have a growth in this sector.
Participating in the seminar, Dr SSV Ramakumar, Director (Research and Development) and Director (Planning and Business Development), Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) highlighted the huge availability of synthetic raw materials such as Polypropylene, MEG, PX-PTA as well as PSF, DTY and FDY required for the technical textile and the active participation of IOCL at the Technical textile park in Bhadrak.
Pradeep Jena, Development Commissioner and Additional Chief Secretary, Government of Odisha informed about the recent investments and how the government is working round the clock for the fast groundbreaking of all the projects.
Talking about the progressive reforms, he said, "In the last few years, we have done many reforms, built a conducive business environment, built state-of-the-art infrastructure, introduced progressive policies and given special attention to the industries at various stages."