To attract investments, the Odisha cabinet approved the Industrial Policy Resolution (IPR) 2022.
According to an official statement issued by the government on Wednesday, the new IPR will be valid for five years and was approved at a cabinet meeting chaired by chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday.
The decision is significant in light of the Make in Odisha Conclave (MIO), which was launched on Wednesday. Odisha offers land and power at a reduced rate under the new IPR and provides quality infrastructure to promote orderly and sustainable industrial growth. It also passed a new tourism policy.
“The major objectives of the policy are to make Odisha the industrial hub of Eastern India, to promote industries in the identified thrust and priority sectors, to develop bestin-class industrial infrastructure, to create an enabling environment for start-ups and MSMEs, and to promote innovation, research & development in new areas of technology,” the release said.
The policy framework divides industries into thrust, priority, others, and negative categories. The IPR 2022 will provide best-in-class incentives for units established in the state’s thrust and priority sectors.
The main incentives under the new IPR are the availability of industrial land at concessional rates with 100% exemption from payment of stamp duty and land conversion charges, as well as the provision of new industrial units in priority and thrust sectors with 100% exemption from payment of electricity duty for 7 and 10 years, respectively.
Furthermore, new industrial units in the priority and thrust sectors will be reimbursed for power tariffs of Rs 2.00 per unit for 7 and 10 years, respectively, from the date of commercial production.
“Eligible industrial units in the thrust sector and priority sector shall be provided 30% and 20% capital investment subsidy respectively on actual investment in plant & machinery, which shall be disbursed in a phased manner… New industrial units under thrust and priority sectors shall be eligible for reimbursement of 100% of net SGST paid, overall limited to 200% of the cost of plant and machinery,” said the press release.
New industrial units in the priority and thrust sector categories will be eligible for 100% reimbursement of the employer’s contribution to the ESI and EPF Schemes for skilled and semi-skilled workers who are state residents for 5 years and 7 years, respectively, from the date of commercial production.
Odisha East Coast Economic Corridor along National Highway 16, Biju Economic Corridor along Biju Expressway covering western Odisha districts are among the new industrial infrastructure development projects that will be implemented.
Industries that develop in these areas will be classified as thrust sectors and will be incentivized accordingly, as will the Odisha East-West Economic Corridor from Khurda to Jharsuguda. According to the policy, each district must have at least one dedicated MSME park.
“Necessary measures shall be taken to make available in industrial regions telecommunications, gas, effluent treatment, waste management and disposal, and other utilities.” At various locations throughout the state, new IDCO (Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation) Towers, Workers Hostels, and Multimodal Logistics Parks will be built. In addition to generating revenue, the proposed policy is expected to attract significant investments and create jobs.
Odisha also approved the “Odisha Renewable Energy Policy, 2022,” which calls for the state to add around 11,000 Megawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2030. The state government will contribute Rs 500 crore over a seven-year period to the creation of the Odisha Renewable Energy Development Fund, which will be used to develop the state’s RE ecosystem.
Odisha has approved the New Odisha Tourism Policy2022, which aims to attract investors to the tourism and hospitality sectors.
Prasanta Patnaik