HP inks MoUs worth Rs 800 cr with Netherlands Cos

Shimla: Himachal Pradesh government has signed MoUs worth Rs 800 crore with two companies of Netherlands. Chief minister Jai Ram Thakur is on a visit to Netherlands to attract investors to the state. The MoU with CM Corps worth Rs 500 crore is meant to develop a golf resort in Kangra district. The project is expected to start in January 2020 and would provide employment to over 1000 people.The other MoU worth Rs 300 crore was signed with Takshinda Foundation for establishing an international skill university in Kangra district. This project is also expected to start by January 2020.
The state government also signed a MoU with Assocham Europe in Netherlands through Dr Vikas Chaturvedi, chairman Assocham Netherlands, to strengthen and expand in the area of agriculture, horticulture, logistic and infrastructure. The Assocham Europe facilitates business between Europe and India.
CM Thakur, while addressing the second international ‘road show’ organized by the state government in association with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) at The Hauge in Netherlands on Friday, showcased the potential of Himachal Pradesh and its willingness to encourage investment.
During the event he said Himachal Pradesh had serious intentions for the renewal of apple orchards “but still they are no match to Dutch apple trees as yield per hectare of apple trees in Netherlands is 5 times more than the yield of traditional apple trees in Himachal Pradesh.”
He said there was immense potential available for the investors to invest in this key sector. “Besides, adventure tourism such as skiing, eco-tourism, developing ski resorts etc also offers vast opportunities for investment,” he added.
Thakur said Himachal Pradesh was keen to do business with Netherlands because “Dutch economy is very open and relies strongly on international trade”.
“Netherlands serves as the gateway for over 20 percent of all European Union-bound Indian exports and we are sure that the country will play a pivotal role in India’s future trade talks with the European Union,” he added.