Top South Korean companies POSCO International and SG Corporation have expressed interests in setting up an Asphalt manufacturing unit in Rajasthan and offered to make “better roads” in the state with their products at an investor meet led by Rajasthan chief minister Bhajan Lal Sharma, who is on a special visit to South Korea to invite investors and business community to explore business and investment opportunities in Rajasthan.
Sharma was leading a high level delegation at the South Korean capital Seoul. This is the first international investors' meet of the state's upcoming ‘Rising Rajasthan' Global Investment Summit 2024, to be held in December this year.
The delegation consists of deputy chief minister Prem Chand Bairwa, additional chief secretary to CM Shikhar Agarwal and principal secretary industries Ajitabh Sharma among other senior officials.
Bhajan Lal Sharma invited startups, innovators and members from South Korea's top business groups to do business in Rajasthan.
“The Government of Rajasthan is not looking at South Korea as a source of investment only, but also aspires to build a strong and long-term partnership across sectors with the business leaders of South Korea,” he said.
As part of investor-friendly initiatives, he assured that Rajasthan government will soon launch a slew of new policies that will enhance the business-friendly climate in the state including the new Industrial Policy, Export Promotion Policy, MSME Policy and One District One Product (ODOP) Policy.
CM Bhajan Lal Sharma holds One-on-One meetings
Besides the investors' meet, Chief Minister also held one-on-one meetings with senior officials of several big South Korean companies and associations from key sectors such as Infrastructure, Chemicals, Startups and Tourism among others.
That included meeting the senior officials of POSCO International, SG Corporation (a South Korean asphalt concrete manufacturer), GS E&C (a South Korean firm working in the renewable energy and battery storage space), Hanwha Solution (chemicals), and Jeonbuk Creative Economy Innovation Center (JCCEI) which works as the incubator for startups. Besides that, several investors who were present during the investors meet also expressed interests in making investments in the state.
Special investor meet for tourism promotion
A special investor meet was also organised to showcase the potential of Rajasthan's tourism sector, including showcasing the 9 UNESCO sites, forts and palaces in the state, forests and wildlife, fairs and festivals, weddings in Rajasthan and ‘Palace on Wheels', which is a heritage train that tours international tourists around the best destinations of Rajasthan over 7 days.
“I am here as a representative of Rajasthan, and I invite you all to invest in our land of heritage and culture. Today, Rajasthan is one of the fastest growing economies in India, equipped with exceptional infrastructure, connectivity, and facilities,” he said.
He said that Rajasthan government is ready to support you at every step of your investment journey.
“Together, we can build a bright future for Rajasthan and further strengthen the friendship between our two great countries,” said Sharma said while inviting the South Korean tourism sector firms to invest in the state.
Prakash Bhandari is a veteran journalist with over 50 years of experience. He has worked with The Times of India for 30 years and contributed to leading publications as well as international news agency AFP.
