MC EXCLUSIVE Punjab records Rs 57,000 crore in executed investments in one year, says state Industries Minister Sanjeev Arora

Sanjeev Arora, Industries and Commerce Minister, Punjab

• Punjab saw Rs 57,000 crore investments in the past year
• PPIS 2026 focused on real investments, not just MoUs
• Fast approvals and deregulation boost Punjab's business climate

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In the past one year, about Rs 57,000 crore worth of investments have been pledged and executed on ground in Punjab, making it one of best investment destinations of India, Punjab’s Minister of Industries and Commerce Sanjeev Arora told Moneycontrol.

"This is actual figure that has been put by businesses on ground, and not promised," Arora said, adding "we’re not merely interested in MoUs".

Arora spoke to Moneycontrol post the conclusion of Progressive Punjab Investors’ Summit (PPIS) 2026. According to an official statement of Punjab government, the PPIS signalled a departure from traditional “MoU-driven” summits. With the theme “Policy to Practice,” the administration highlighted that Rs 1.57 lakh crore of investment is already active on the ground (since 2022), which created an estimated 5 lakh jobs so far in the state.

Arora said, the companies that have already submitted the 'Common Application Form' (CAF) --a single, unified digital document that allows investors to apply for all required state-level clearances and incentives through a one-stop portal--include Trident and Plaksha, each pledging Rs 5,000 crore investment, followed by Vardhman Steel with Rs 3,600 crore and Verbio India with Rs 3,500 crore for biofuel and renewable energy projects.

Tata Steel has pledged to invest Rs 3,200 crore, JSW has promised Rs 3,000 crore, and Arora Iron & Steel has committed Rs 1,000 crore. Energy and chemical sectors were bolstered by HMEL with Rs 2,600 crore promised investment, and IOL Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals with Rs 1,400 crore.

"When a company submits a CAF, it means, it has already bought the land, and applied to the government for the first incentive – the stamp duty waiver, followed by other benefits," Arora explained.

"Industrial relations are excellent in Punjab, there is an abundance of skill in the state. Many top tier institutes are here," the Minister said, adding that the state government is working on making Mohali the next most favoured IT destination of the country.

Arora further stated that global companies, based out of US, UK, Germany, France, Switzerland have also submitted CAFs to the Punjab government.

'Fast clearance a priority'

On faster clearances, Arora noted that the state has a 'Right to Business Act' (RTB), under which all the "green industries, and few orange industries", coming up in industrial parks are given approval in 5 days.

In Punjab, industries are classified into color-coded categories by the Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB) based on their Pollution Index (PI).

The Green industries are those with a low environmental impact, such as the assembly of bicycles and baby carriages, flour and dal mills, and small-scale bakeries. This category also includes the manufacturing of consumer electronics like computers and air coolers, mushroom cultivation, seed processing, and "dry process" textiles.

Whereas, the Orange category includes industries with moderate pollution potential, such as fruit and vegetable processing, soft drink bottling, and automobile servicing stations.

"If they are not in industrial parks, approval is given in 15 days. And expansion units are given approval in 18 days," Arora said.

"Moreover, there is a Punjab Invest Portal, where all applications are given approval in 45 days," said Arora. "Punjab is one of the best states for Ease of Doing Business."

The Minister said that Punjab is focused on giving fast approvals, and it’s not possible without de-regulation. "Any query of an industry, is solved, and made as policy. It’s (deregulation) a continuous process, and will keep on happening."