Maharashtra has been in the forefront of social and economic reforms

Nov 15: Maharashtra has been in the forefront of social and economic reforms, and now that the world is about to enter the new millennium, these reforms would be carried out at a faster pace. He said various projects of the state, including the employment guarantee scheme, are considered role models by other countries, and even the World Bank has appreciated them.

Deshmukh maintained that Maharashtra was still a favoured investment destination, and even a recent US Embassy report had endorsed this. “Around 57 per cent of the foreign investment out of the total US $4.6 billion in the five-year span ending 2003 will be in Maharashtra. For such investments, the government is committed to provide a conducive environment and state-of-the-art infrastructure. Most of the foreign direct investment approvals are in the state,” he said.

The CM pointed out that rapid progress is being made in the area of Information Technology (IT) in the state, and computer literacy is a must for certain government jobs.