Private industrial parks will change Kerala’s business fortunes: Minister P Rajeev

The National Deep Tech Startup Policy stated that measures such as leveraging public procurement for startups have been proactively implemented by states like Kerala. (Representative image)

Kerala isn’t a state that’s known for its industrial or startup ecosystem prowess, Recently, however, the Central government lauded Kerala's proactive approach towards startups. The National Deep Tech Startup Policy stated that measures such as leveraging public procurement for startups have been proactively implemented by states like Kerala.

Later this year, Kerala’s first private industrial park is likely to be inaugurated in Palakkad district.

In an exclusive interview with Moneycontrol, Kerala’s minister for industries P Rajeev talked about the state government’s plans to support small and medium enterprises, help startups innovate, create jobs and encourage industrial growth. Edited excerpts:

Q: Industry is confident that private industrial parks can change the face of industrialisation in Kerala. To what extent will this move yield results?

It will bring in a sea change. We are ready to offer all legal protection and other incentives to all units working out of private industrial parks. The government will provide a single-window clearance for all proposals related to them. Eleven new private industrial parks have been cleared. Another private industrial park is likely to be inaugurated in Kannur soon. Around 700 acres would come under private industrial parks, which would be a major boost to the industrialisation of the state.

Engineering colleges or educational institutions with a 10-acre campus can come up with a private industrial park. The plan is to provide higher educational institutions with the required research outcome and industrial production. We are trying to make sure that students get the training that they desire at these industrial parks so that it becomes easier for them to find jobs in relevant fields.

Q: Medical electronics, defence/aviation startups and biotechnology seem to be areas where Kerala has made some progress.

For the last 30 years, it was IT that ruled in terms of job generation. We are trying to encourage companies in the biotech and medical electronics space along with defence-related startups.

The new Digital Science Park is expected to make the state capital of Thiruvananthapuram a hub of industries, business units and startups in digital technologies. The park, to be located near the Digital University campus at Thiruvananthapuram, will provide space for companies specialising in the domains of Industry 4.0, hardware and sustainable and smart materials. The Digital Science Park will house centres of excellence in emerging technologies, research laboratories and a digital incubator as well as computing infrastructure and workspaces for business units, startups and industries.

There is also an electronics-related Science Park coming up in Kochi and a new biotech park in Kannur. We are also looking to encourage agri-tech startups and maritime electronics.

Some companies have lauded the quality of engineering talent available in the state. Your comments?

IBM was very vocal about the talent emerging out of Kerala, for instance. See, in Kerala’s case, land is limited and the environment is fragile. We have to provide new incentives on capital investment. IBM and Cognizant have come in, TCS is setting up a new campus in Kochi, and Safran, a French multinational company which works in the aerospace and defence sectors, has opened its unit in Kerala. Electric vehicles sector, its batteries and components is another area we are focusing on. We have no doubt about the quality of talent in the state and are ready to assist.

Kerala has actively tried to grow its micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) sector. Can you update us on that effort?

Over 1.39 lakh MSMEs have been registered across Kerala in one year. Of these, 45,000 have been founded by women entrepreneurs. From our end, we are trying to help them with technology management, marketing support and also extend consultancy services from experts.

The state government will provide Rs 1 lakh each to 1,000 MSME ventures that have been in operation for more than three years. Up to Rs 2 crore will be given as capital investment for approved projects. Our goal is to convert 1,000 (MSMEs) into ventures having Rs 100 crore turnover each under the Mission 1000 project.

The state had announced plans to introduce ‘Made in Kerala’ products. What’s the thought process behind this?

The government’s decision to brand products made in Kerala has been approved in the assembly too. The plan is to provide a good market for MSMEs to flourish. Thanks to tourism, Kerala’s brand has got worldwide appreciation. This is a follow-up action to that.

The ‘Made in Kerala’ label will be applicable to all distinctive goods produced in the state. The plan is to certify the quality of the state's goods and assist small enterprises to find markets on a national and international scale.