Odisha receives Rs 21,000 cr worth investment intentions at Dubai meet

New Delhi [India], June 30 (ANI): Odisha Investors' Meet held in Dubai received the expression of interest for investment worth Rs 21,000 crore in the State, thereby creating an estimated employment potential of more than 19,000 individuals.

The Investors' Meet was jointly organized with industry body FICCI and the Embassy of India in UAE on Wednesday. It was attended by more than 150 companies based out of the UAE and the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region.

Investment intentions were majorly received by the State across range of sectors such as infrastructure, hospitality, logistics, chemicals, food processing.

Notably, it was Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's second foreign tour during his 22-year long tenure as head of the State.

Patnaik invited the potential investors to visit Odisha and has also assured all the companies of "unmatched facilitation" and support, a statement said.

The team which participated in the investors' meeting included a high-level business delegation from the companies that have already invested in Odisha.

During the Investors Meet, a presentation on the "Odisha Industrial Ecosystem" was made, highlighting the huge investment opportunities in Odisha.

Patnaik apprised the gathering that his state Odisha holds the lion's share of India's mineral reserves with 96 per cent of the country's chromite reserves, 92 per cent nickel, 53 per cent bauxite, 45 per cent manganese, 35 per cent iron-one, and 23 per cent coal reserves.

Citing Odisha as a large and highly skilled workforce, he said the state government has made good investments in setting up technical and professional institutes at all skill levels -- ITIs, Polytechnics, and engineering and management colleges.

The Chief Minister also announced that the State would conduct the third edition of its flagship Global Investors Meet - "2022" during November 30- December 04, 2022 at the state capital Bhubaneswar, and invited the investors to attend the event and witness the potential the state offers.

The Odisha government has approved investments amounting to over $50 billion since 2021, the statement added.

The state is attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) in sectors such as metals, chemicals and petrochemicals, textiles and apparel including technical textiles, food processing including seafood processing, logistics and clean energy. (ANI)