On Tuesday, Madhya Pradesh concluded a two-day global investors’ summit and proudly announced investment pledges worth Rs 26.61 lakh crore by global and domestic companies. That is precisely double the size of the state’s gross domestic product (GDP). Late January, Odisha, one of the mineral-rich states in the country that is betting big on its emergent manufacturing sector, boasted of investment commitments worth Rs 12.89 lakh crore (1.4 times its economy) after its Utkarsh Odisha conclave.
In just the first two months of 2025, as many as six states – Karnataka, West Bengal, Kerala and Assam being the other four — have organised such events and witnessed aggregate investment proposals worth a staggering Rs 60.5 lakh crore.
In December 2024, potential investors had huddled together in Rajasthan and Bihar. The eight states together saw pledges worth over Rs 97 lakh crore in just three months.
Such events have been in vogue since economic liberalisation, but the size and pomp have grown manifold in the last two decades. What is remarkable about the latest season is the heightened focus on frontier areas of manufacturing like solar modules, wind turbines, hydrogen electrolysers, lithium ion storage and semiconductor wafers. The startup ecosystem is being given a big push, and patient capital is wooed as vigorously as the global tech giants and domestic conglomerates. Besides, the states have also become more responsible, as is evident from the fact that the assorted incentives being offered to investors are less of fiscal nature. Instead, easier approvals are being offered, with promise of a cordial frontline bureaucracy. Commitments are being made to make land and skilled manpower available.
Another interesting feature is that traditional manufacturing states are being given a tough competition by the states with largely consumption-driven/services-dominated economies. This could signal a harmony with the volatile global supply chains.
In fact, large commitments in investor events are not new: In last February, Uttar Pradesh flaunted investment promises to the tune of Rs 33.5 trillion, or 1.6 times the size of its economy, after a similar meet. Experience suggests that only a fraction of these promises are actually fulfilled. Yet the scale of ambition is only tending to be big, and rightly so. The trend is in sync with the country’s goal to become a $30-35 trillion economy by 2047.
The investment commitments are in diverse sectors putting states in direct competition with one another to attract domestic and foreign investments.
The Centre is actively nudging states to improve the business climate to attract private investment to make India a global manufacturing hub and make it a more integral part of supply chains. Prime minister Narendra Modi and his colleagues are seen addressing these investment conclaves to support the states’ efforts.
Investment commitments by India Inc and global investors in these conclaves also saw commitments from traditional areas like petrochemicals, automotive, steel, mining and cement manufacturing, in addition to emerging sectors.
Madhya Pradesh’s Global Investors Summit, which concluded on Tuesday, saw investment commitments worth Rs 26.61 lakh crore through initial pacts, which could generate 1.73 million jobs. State-run power major NTPC promised to invest Rs 2 lakh crore in renewable projects in the central state, while Adani Group committed to invest Rs 1.1 lakh crore across many sectors.
Odisha has secured investment commitments worth Rs 12.89 lakh crore as against their initial estimate of around Rs 5 lakh crore. Along with traditional mineral-led industries, the states signed pacts in other areas including renewable energy, IT/ITeS, and food processing.
The Karnataka investment summit earlier this month saw investment commitments of Rs 10.27 lakh crore and jobs creation potential of 0.6 million. The investment promises varied from solar projects, battery storage and Wind Turbine Generator plants to cement, steel, and affiliate businesses.
While West Bengal, Assam and Kerala have also elicited substantial interest from investors, more such global investment summits are in the offing later this year including by Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh.
In the recent World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, in January, Maharashtra signed investment proposals worth Rs 15.7 lakh crore while Telangana has also signed pacts for Rs 1.78 lakh crore in the southern state.
Through these summits, the states are promising to ease access, minimise compliances, reform land and building norms, and improve power supply and law and order as better governance is seen vital for attracting investors.
Expressing optimism that private sector investment will continue to rise, chief economic adviser V Anantha Nageswaran had recently said that India’s gross fixed capital formation (GFCF) rate has to rise from 30.8% now to mid-30s, aiding India to grow at a sustainable rate when the world is going to be extraordinarily difficult.
Nageswaran said the critical drivers that will sustain growth towards Viksit Bharat 2047 include generating productive employment, addressing the skill gap challenge, tapping into the full potential of the agriculture sector, and enhancing India’s manufacturing and MSME growth through deregulation. Other priority areas include managing India’s energy security and transition, balancing rural-urban development, continuing support to high-quality capital expenditure, and making ‘Make in India’ synonymous with high quality through innovations, R&D and quality consciousness.
This article was first uploaded on February twenty-six, twenty twenty-five, at eighteen minutes past ten in the night.