Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Anand Sharma has some surprises in store for Himachal Pradesh. He will announce new projects designed to give a major boost to specific industrial sectors like agriculture and food processing,skill development and infrastructure upgrade,information technology and tourism sectors. "My ministry has been working on I these projects for some time. They won't be hollow promises but will be backed by official sanctions and strategies for implementation on the ground," the minister said when contacted in Chandigarh. He will be in Shimla tomorrow. Sharma will announce the projects barely 24 hours before the BJP's Nayaya rally,which has been called to highlight the bias attitude of the UPA government against Himachal. However,Sharma is unlikely to make any commitment on restoring the industrial package,yet he apparently has worked on alternatives,which could put the state's industrial growth back on the track. "Has anyone ever done any cost analysis on the Central industrial package about the benefits,which the state has got even in terms of employment avenues. It's perhaps a dismal situation. There is need to make certain introspections as what state really needs now," he said. Last year,Sharma had deputed a team of top officials of his ministry,who held a detailed conversation with the state government and Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to identify areas where the state needed interventions of the Centre. Tomorrow,the officials accompanying Sharma are expected to speak on the new proposals and also interact with captains of the industry,beside top state government officials on new strategies and funding which will be available to the state to implement these projects. The minister will inaugurate IIUS (Industrial Infrastructure Upgradation Scheme) at Pharmaceuticals and Allied Industries Cluster,Baddi and later a round table with CEOs at Shimla to roll out new plans. PCC spokesman Kuldeep Rathore said the BJP's Nayaya rally was a political gimmick to cover up for the state government's failures,corruption and mal-administration. "Anand Sharma is coming with a series of new projects for the state,which will show the Centre had been giving a liberal help to the state but the government was not doing justice to the people," he said.
