ITANAGAR, Jul 28: Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein on Tuesday while participating in a videoconference with the state’s Minister of Industries Tumke Bagra, Commissioner (Planning & Investment) and Secretary, Department of Industries advocated for formulation of a purchase policy which will give preference to products manufactured in Arunachal Pradesh.
Referring to the Central government’s policy of promoting domestic industries through a purchase preference mechanism for ‘Made in India’ products, Mein said that there is also a need to provide some preference to products made in Arunachal Pradesh in government procurement in order to promote investment in manufacturing industries in the state. “Although the Arunachal Pradesh Industrial and Investment Policy allows a preferential treatment to the state’s registered units/enterprises, without a suitable Purchase Preference Policy from the Industry Department, it will be difficult to attract investment in manufacturing in the state,” he opined, also stating that the proposed policy will be in line with GoI policy on purchase preference which was amended on June 4 last.
While advising the officers to take inputs from similar policies pursued by other state governments, the DCM requested the Department of Industry to initiate the process of formulating an optimum Purchase Preference Policy that would encourage local manufacturers. He also opined to promote the local brands like organic Kiwi wine, ‘Naara Aaba’ and similar others across the country and asked the officers to study the causes behind failures of the pineapple processing unit at Niglok in East Siang and tomato processing units at Rupa in West Kameng and formulate appropriate remedial measures. Asking the officers to enquire about the palm oil companies that had signed MoUs with the state government for setting up processing industries with buy-back policies, he expressed dissatisfaction while learning that some of them haven’t turned up yet to set up units and have deviated from the buyback agreement according to which matured seeds produced by the local growers are to be procured by them. In this regard, the DCM said that many progressive farmers in East Siang and Lower Dibang Valley districts have grown palm oils in large scales with the hope of economic upliftment. Mein, however, exuded hope that the Mega Food Park coming up in the state capital will cater to the processing and marketing needs of the local agricultural producers, assuring that the state government will provide all logistic support for approach road, electricity and water supply.

The Minister of Industries asked the Secretary of Industries to expedite drafting the ‘Policy for Purchase Preference for Products Manufactured in Arunachal Pradesh’ to be vetted by the Planning, Finance and Law Departments so that it can be placed in the next cabinet meeting for approval. He also opined that the state’s Micro Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and indigenous textile & handicrafts need to be given due importance which are considered as priority sectors by the state government for promoting local entrepreneurship.
Commissioner (Planning & Investment) P S Lokhande while assuring to work in coordination with the Department of Industries assured to finalize the policy within 15 days and informed that a single-window clearance process will be initiated for the prospective investors with emphasis on ‘ease of doing business’.
The former Secretary of Industry Department N T Glow and the new appointee Hage Tari attended the videoconference. DCM Media Cell    

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Kenter Joya Riba

(Managing Editor)
      She is a graduate in Science with post graduation in Sociology from University of Pune. She has been in the media industry for nearly a decade. Before turning to print business, she has been associated with radio and television.
Email: kenterjoyaz@easternsentinel.in / editoreasternsentinel@gmail.com
Phone: 0360-2212313

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