Telangana delegation led by IT and Industries Minister KT Rama Rao has successfully concluded its trip to Davos for the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting. This is the fifth visit of KTR to Davos, and like as always, this year too, the minister’s efforts to bring investments to the state have yielded fruitful results. Across sectors, Telangana attracted investments worth Rs. 21,000 crores.
Presenting the growth story of Telangana and pitching for investments, Minister KTR has participated in meetings with leaders of top global organisations, attended round tables and spoken at panel discussions and shared his thoughts on a wide array of subjects in the four-day trip. In addition to this, the minister also interacted with the Indian diaspora in Zurich and highlighted the progress of Telangana to the NRIs in Switzerland.
At a juncture where the global economy is on the brink of recession, Telangana managed to bag some big-ticket investments. Telangana delegation was successful in showcasing the state as a global investment destination and gateway to India. The Telangana pavilion has grabbed the attention of many top companies with representatives of several global organisations visiting the stall.
Telangana pavilion presented information regarding Telangana’s geography, investments it attracted in the last eight years and initiatives of IT and Industry departments such as T-Hub and T-Works. Videos of various government programmes, policies and projects like Kaleshwaram played at the pavilion were a special attraction. The pavilion which was located in the 62nd building on Promenade road, the main thoroughfare of Davos, was abuzz with visitors.
Sharing his experience of the visit, Minister KTR observed that the WEF is the right platform to introduce Telangana, a progressive state which has exceptional industrial policies and infrastructure and said that Telangana is strengthening its ties with companies on the WEF platform. “All the meetings at the WEF were highly productive and we were able to attract Rs. 21,000 crores at the meet,” said KTR.
KTR said that bringing huge investments to the state and thereby creating employment is the driving force. “I believe that all the new investments and meetings regarding prospective investments will yield favourable outcomes,” added KTR.
The big draw of this edition of Davos trip was the WEF coming forward to establish its first Indian centre in Hyderabad. This thematic centre will focus on life sciences and health care. This announcement further consolidates the city’s position as the hub for life sciences and pharmaceuticals.
Some major investments are as follows: Microsoft announced to set up 3 more data centres in Hyderabad with an investment of Rs. 16,000 crores. Bharti Airtel Group to set up a large Hyperscale Data Centre in Hyderabad with Rs. 2,000 crores. Eurofins, a global leader in the pharma sector, has announced the establishment of a state-of-the-art laboratory campus in Genome Valley with an outlay of Rs. 1,000 crores. Other global companies such as PepsiCo, P&G, Allox, Appollo Tyres Ltd, WebPT, and Inspire Brands came forward with investments worth Rs. 2,000 crores.
On this occasion, Minister KTR thanked the officials from the IT and Industries department and other departments who were involved in making this trip successful. He conveyed special thanks to the Telangana delegation which accompanied him. Also, Minister KTR asked the officials to march forward with the same spirit in the future.
The delegation comprised of Principal Secretary, IT and Industries Departments Jayesh Ranjan, Special Secretary, Investment Promotion & NRI Affairs E. Vishnu Vardhan Reddy, Director, Lifesciences Shakti Nagappan, Director, Automotives Gopal Krishnan, Chief Relations Officer, Amarnath Reddy Atmakuri, Director, Digital Media Dileep Konatham.