News and Events

Automobile sector-focussed policies on the anvil

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Wednesday said that the state would soon ink investment agreements with several automobile and auto component makers and would come out with series of industry-specific policies shortly.

In her address after inaugurating Daimler India Commercial Vehicle’s truck plant at Oragadam around 45 km from Chennai, the Chief Minister said, “Tamil Nadu will soon sign memoranda of understandings (MoUs) with a number of companies including both vehicle and components manufacturers.”

Referring to the Vision 2023 document, released by her recently, she said: “We are presently finalising a set of policy reforms that will translate our vision into reality.” Jayalalithaa said the government would soon announce industry-specific policies for automobiles, auto components, biotechnology, aerospace and renewable energy with special focus on solar power generation soon.

“The new industrial policy 2012 will accelerate the pace of growth of the manufacturing sector to 14 per cent,” she added.

She said the government is committed to improve the infrastructure network in the state by laying 2,000 km of six and eight-lane expressways and 5,000 km of four-lane highways, and providing 20,000 Mw of power capacity before 2023.

Jayalalithaa said the state government has offered attractive package to support Daimler following which the latter has agreed to scale up its investment to Rs 4,000 crore as against ts original investment plan of Rs 3,000 crore.

Initial production of the plant will be 36,000 units per year, which is scalable to 70,000 units per annum. The facility, which presently has around 1,500 people and is expected to generate job opportunities to over 15,000 people, including direct and indirect jobs