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Modi`s Vibrant Gujarat misses many a beat: The Indian Express
Ahmedabad, Aug 29: It is being touted as an investors` El Dorado but Vibrant Gujarat, the investment fair of the Narendra Modi government to be held at the end of next month, may prove to be as elusive as the city in the old legend.
Ahmedabad, Aug 29: It is being touted as an investors’ El Dorado but Vibrant Gujarat, the investment fair of the Narendra Modi government to be held at the end of next month, may prove to be as elusive as the city in the old legend.
While the government has identified 123 projects for sale at Vibrant Gujarat, only about two dozen presentations — none relating to the major projects — will be ready in time. Sources in Credit Rating Information Services of India Ltd (Crisil), hired by the state government to help attract investment, say nine projects will be ready for presentation by next week, another 14 by the time the meeting begins.
Reason? Either the government hasn’t done enough ground work, or it has rushed through with too much in very little time.
‘‘We have been appointed only a few days back for this feasibility study. It is a huge task and we have, therefore, divided our work in three parts,’’ said Sunil R. Parekh, who is on Crisil’s infrastructure & corporate advisory body.
Of the 123 projects, 59 involve infrastructure; these will be evaluated by Crisil. But the government has no more than listed the other 64 projects. These are areas in which it expects private enterprise to do everything on its own — conduct feasibility studies, raise funds, execute.
Sources in industry said that some areas, including biotech, may involve individual projects valued at hundreds of crores of rupees but at this stage there is nothing solid to suggest that the investments are at hand.
The biggest item, in terms of value, on the Vibrant Gujarat list appears to be a Rs 1,246-crore tourist circuit for Junagadh. But this isn’t a single project: it is being split into several smaller self-contained projects to make it more attractive to investors.
The rest of the list doesn’t make for impressive reading: a corporate retreat in Hazira, a corporate sports club in Jamnagar, a Jurassic theme park in Balasinore, multi-speciality hospitals, development of the archaeological site in Dholavira, a tourist circuit in Junagadh, and ecotourism projects in Nal Sarovar and Gandhinagar.
While these projects may be important in their own way, what won’t figure on the list are some really big projects: an integrated road-transport development plan, including a metro for Ahmedabad, the Sabarmati riverfront development project, development of Ankleshwar town, and a special economic zone in Dahej.
‘‘These are medium- and long-term projects and will need a lot of research before a dossier can be prepared on them,’’ says Parekh. ‘‘We have set them aside for the time being so the maximum leverage can be obtained at Vibrant Gujarat through projects on which we have finished the studies.’’
He adds, however, that this is probably the first exercise by any state government to facilitate large-scale participation by private investors in infrastructure projects.
What emerges is that Crisil, given little more than a month to evaluate projects and seek investors, is having to concentrate on the smaller ones.
As Parekh put it, Crisil has had to focus on ‘‘single-stage projects’’, though it has mobilised a six-member team of infrastructure experts in Ahmedabad.
Asked if this does not diminish the much-hyped meeting, a government official who refused to be named gave an explanation cloaked in euphemism. ‘‘We knew that the projects would have to go through a lot of transition before they get a professional look. These will be offered just as possibilities to investors. Depending on Crisil’s recommendations and interest shown by investors we will shortlist them.’’
‘‘We have been appointed only a few days back for this feasibility study. It is a huge task and we have, therefore, divided our work in three parts,’’ said Sunil R. Parekh, who is on Crisil’s infrastructure & corporate advisory body.
Of the 123 projects, 59 involve infrastructure; these will be evaluated by Crisil. But the government has no more than listed the other 64 projects. These are areas in which it expects private enterprise to do everything on its own — conduct feasibility studies, raise funds, execute.
Sources in industry said that some areas, including biotech, may involve individual projects valued at hundreds of crores of rupees but at this stage there is nothing solid to suggest that the investments are at hand.
The biggest item, in terms of value, on the Vibrant Gujarat list appears to be a Rs 1,246-crore tourist circuit for Junagadh. But this isn’t a single project: it is being split into several smaller self-contained projects to make it more attractive to investors.
The rest of the list doesn’t make for impressive reading: a corporate retreat in Hazira, a corporate sports club in Jamnagar, a Jurassic theme park in Balasinore, multi-speciality hospitals, development of the archaeological site in Dholavira, a tourist circuit in Junagadh, and ecotourism projects in Nal Sarovar and Gandhinagar.
While these projects may be important in their own way, what won’t figure on the list are some really big projects: an integrated road-transport development plan, including a metro for Ahmedabad, the Sabarmati riverfront development project, development of Ankleshwar town, and a special economic zone in Dahej.
‘‘These are medium- and long-term projects and will need a lot of research before a dossier can be prepared on them,’’ says Parekh. ‘‘We have set them aside for the time being so the maximum leverage can be obtained at Vibrant Gujarat through projects on which we have finished the studies.’’
He adds, however, that this is probably the first exercise by any state government to facilitate large-scale participation by private investors in infrastructure projects.
What emerges is that Crisil, given little more than a month to evaluate projects and seek investors, is having to concentrate on the smaller ones.
As Parekh put it, Crisil has had to focus on ‘‘single-stage projects’’, though it has mobilised a six-member team of infrastructure experts in Ahmedabad.
Asked if this does not diminish the much-hyped meeting, a government official who refused to be named gave an explanation cloaked in euphemism. ‘‘We knew that the projects would have to go through a lot of transition before they get a professional look. These will be offered just as possibilities to investors. Depending on Crisil’s recommendations and interest shown by investors we will shortlist them.’’