Making it Big for the Japanese
It seems that Tamil Nadu (located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal in India), might be getting industrial hub status for Japan. According to an article in IBN Live, various Asian companies have been “growing four-fold in the state during the last five years and plans are underway to set up an industrial township in Mahabalipuram.”
Omega Project
Right now, around 70 percent of the land has been acquired. According to an official, the Omega project agreement should be finalized “soon.” All in all though, it will take around a decade to complete, with the first phase due for completion in around half that time. There has been a quadrupling of the firms from 2006/7 where it stood at around 65 companies to today’s figure of 245. Anticipation by the state is that this will increase to 300 by the end of 2011.
Attraction of Japanese Investments
Apparently these days, Japanese investments are very attractive in China. This is because the state may view it as “top government officials from power, Metro Water, non-renewable energy and ports provided insights into where the investments are possible in the infrastructure sector between the two countries at a seminar.”
Japan’s Interest in Chennai
What makes Chennai (Tamil Nadu’s capital city) so attractive to Japan? Possibly it is due to the fact that around 30 percent of Japanese firms are working in India. According to Chennai’s Consul-General, Consulate General, Masanori Nakano, “we see the state as being close to the South East Asian countries and as a gateway to the West Asia, Africa and Europe. Availability of highly skilled manpower and investment-friendly policies were the other advantages.” Further, an economic co-operation has been signed between JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization) and the State Guidance Bureau.