Lucknow: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday announced that of the two defence industrial corridors proposed in the Union Budget, one would be in Uttar Pradesh.
Speaking at the inaugural session of the UP Investors’ Summit, he said that the defence industrial corridor in UP would pass through Agra, Aligarh, Lucknow, Kanpur, Jhansi and Chitrakoot. “This will entail an investment of Rs 20,000 crore and generate 2.5 lakh jobs. The proposed Purvanchal and Bundelkhand expressway will also give a major boost to industrial development in the state,” he said.
The Prime Minister lauded chief minister Yogi Adityanath, his ministerial colleagues, and the bureaucracy for bringing Uttar Pradesh on the road to development in a short period f 11 months.
“When change begins, it is visible in every sphere. The presence of so many investors at this summit indicates that the change has started taking place and Yogi Adityanath has brought new hope,” he said.
Mr Modi said that a new Uttar Pradesh was taking shape and he would make whatever contribution was possible.
“There is a saying that ‘Kos kos par badle paani, char kos par vani’ that explains the diversity that exists in India. In UP, this saying is even more pronounced because every district has its own identity. If the chikan work is famous in Lucknow, it is the mango of Malihabad that is known worldwide. You have Bhadohi that is famous for carpets, Varanasi for ‘zari’ work and Ferozabad for its glassware. There is the Subah-e-Banaras’ and ‘Shame Avadh’. Then we have Ganga, Yamuna and Saryu. We have the BHU and the IIT, the land of Ram and Krishna as well as the Taj Mahal,” Mr Modi said.
The Prime Minister said that this diversity would be used to advantage in the “one district, one product” scheme that will ensure holistic development. “Now is the time for value-addition in every sphere and I am happy that Yogi Adityanath is doing this. The reduction of human interface and increased emphasis on digital permissions will increase the ease of doing business in UP,” he said.
The Prime Minister also underlined the fact that the young working age group would help in taking Uttar Pradesh to greater heights.
