Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb on Thursday urged investors from Bangladesh to take advantage of the incentives being offered by the state government in the industrial sector.
The Chief Minister said that Tripura fulfills all the prerequisites to become the new IT hub and industrialists from Bangladesh should utilize the opportunity to help both the regions flourish together.
Addressing the Digital Bangladesh IT Business Summit 2022 in Agartala, Deb said, "Tripura government is working on a priority basis to promote the IT sector in the state. Bangladesh can invest here in Data Centers which will help the country in strengthening its service sectors like banking."
"The government has given a lot of relaxations for investors such as 50 per cent rebate in electricity, rebate in GST for five years, reduced electricity prices for commercial use and 24 hours uninterrupted supply of electricity -- a must for any industrial park or area."
Apart from that, Deb said, Tripura has a high-speed internet gateway with Chittagong. All the necessary steps are being undertaken from the end of the state government to ensure ease of doing business, he added.
According to Deb, several companies from abroad have shown interest in setting up their ventures in Tripura.
"An American company has arrived here. They have started their initial work at an IT building. We are looking after all the logistic matters. Today, we have railway connectivity across the country. Kisan trains are carrying state grown products at subsidized prices to national markets, railway connectivity has been extended up to Bangalore, Kolkata, Delhi, Deoghar and recently Jammu Express has agreed to run a train on a trial basis," he said.
Speaking about Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's approach towards Tripura, he said, "For the COVID pandemic, several projects that were in the planning stage did not see any progress. I have spoken to Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina on a number of occasions. She assured me to open the Cox Bazar international airport for Tripura-bound flights. Besides, we are also working wholeheartedly to develop another airport at Kailashahar."
Chief Minister Deb mentioned that the Kailashahar airport was non-functional for several years and he has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to transform it into a big-ticket airport. Works are in the primary stage pertaining to the project. The new airport will be opened at a plot of 500 acres of land and Rs 500 crore will be spent on the project.
Deb further informed that he had also written a letter to Prime Minister Modi seeking direct flights in Agartala-Chittagong, Agartala-Dhaka and Agartala-Bangkok routes as soon as possible.
Deb emphasised that once North Eastern states start using Chittagong port for the import of goods, Bangladesh will be immensely benefited as only rice and wheat exports will give Rs 5,000 crore duty to Bangladesh.
( With inputs from ANI )
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