Bangalore:
Seeking to woo business leaders, Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy on Friday dispelled notions of labour unrest in his state, saying it is a thing of the past as reflected in tremendous response for "Emerging Kerala" road shows where 1,200 investors have registered so far.
"I would like to mention that the most often quoted concern about labour unrest is a thing of the past. The industrial climate in Kerala in the past few decades is much better than the rest of India. I assure you there is no reason to worry on account of labour in Kerala," he told reporters in Bangalore.
Oommen Chandy further said 1,200 investors have registered to participate in the "Emerging Kerala" Meet to be held at Kochi in September. "This shows that concerns of labour unrest in Kerala are a thing of the past," he added.
There has been a wrong notion of Kerala not being an investor-friendly state, he said and pointed to a recent World Bank study had ranked the state the second best investor friendly state.
Oommen Chandy further said Kerala was very much ahead in health and education, but lagging in infrastructure development. "Now the people understand the reality and want results. Ideology or slogans will not yield results. We have to be practical."
Asked about investment figures the state expects through "Emerging Kerala" meet, he said government is not setting a target in terms of investments and number of jobs created.
He said the Kerala government intends to simplify procedures to ensure grant of clearances within a specific time frame.
Kerala Industries Minister P K Kunhalikutty said the government had fruitful discussions with 10 companies who have evinced interest in investing in the state. Among them are L&T, Bhoruka Power Corporation and others, he said adding that the discussions have reached final stages.