The State government will give clearance to projects presented at the Emerging Kerala meet within 90 days, if they do not require complicated procedures.

However, certain projects which require Central Government and CRZ clearances will take more time, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has said.

Interacting with media persons here ahead of the investors’ meet, scheduled to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on September 12, the Chief Minister said Emerging Kerala is not an investment meet in the conventional sense. It is a platform to highlight the State’s strengths.

He said priority would be given to projects on waste management, value-addition to sectors such as agriculture and power. The government has drawn up a series of projects across various sectors that have growth and investment potential.

It includes high-speed rail corridor project, monorail, IT parks etc. He, however, avoided questions on controversies.

No land sale

The Chief Minister also reiterated that no land would be sold or given for long-term lease for any of the projects.

Neither would any procedures be bypassed in giving clearance. But the clearance process would be done in a time-bound manner, he added.

The government will also set up an investment clearance board to speed up the implementation of the projects that came up at the meet, Chandy said.

Industries Minister P.K. Kunhalikutty said that projects listed on the Web site of Emerging Kerala were mostly pending with different departments for some time now. The government is also expecting new projects to come up during the Emerging Kerala meet, he said, adding that over 2,500 participants from 52 countries would take part in the meet.

Minister for Rural Development and Registration K.C. Joseph and Managing Director of the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation Alkesh Sharma were present.

> sajeevkumar.v@thehindu.co.in

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