Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Friday that investors coming to Kerala need not worry about red tape. He said the Left Front government has ensured that no investor coming to Kerala will have to face the cobweb of procedural delays and meet the barriers of red tape.
“We have ensured that no investor coming to Kerala faces the cobweb of procedural delays and meets the barriers of red tape. We have made major strides in simplifying procedures regarding investments. One example is the Kerala Micro, Small, Medium Enterprises Facilitation Act, 2019, under which MSMEs can start operations by obtaining acknowledgement certificates from the online KSWIFT portal. Necessary licences need to be obtained within a period of the next 3 years and 6 months,” CM Vijayan said while inaugurating the Invest Kerala Global Summit (IKGS) 2025 at the Lulu International Convention Centre in Kochi on Friday.
Chief Minister Vijayan said the state government attaches great importance to the development of infrastructure for industries. It has ensured the development of not only national highways but also all roads. Kerala is a state without power cuts, he said.
“The Government of Kerala gives importance not only to the development of National Highways but also to all roads within the state. Good travel-worthy roads will cut down travel time for people who frequently travel on business trips. Our State has four airports with good facilities, and the state is taking every possible initiative to make destinations in Kerala more connected with global centres. We accord prime importance to developing amenities at airports and ensuring more facilities for landing all kinds of aircraft,” he said.
Stating that Kerala’s investment scenario is on the cusp of history, CM Vijayan said the state is witnessing progress and change for the better in the arena of investments.
The state, despite its fiscal constraints, has contributed 25 per cent of the cost for land acquisition for widening National Highway 66 and is taking all steps to get approvals from the Union government for railway development, which is necessary for running high-speed trains, he said.
Addressing the inaugural event virtually, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on Friday offered the Union government’s complete support to Kerala in garnering investments.
“The one major factor that plays a very vital role in attracting investments is good road infrastructure. In Kerala, we have completed projects costing more than Rs 20,000 crore, and at the same time, there are ongoing projects worth Rs 60,000 crore,” Gadkari said. He also announced 31 upcoming road projects for Kerala with a total length of 896 kilometres, costing Rs 50,000 crore.
Union Minister Piyush Goyal, Minister of State Jayant Chaudhary, state Industries Minister P Rajeeve, Opposition Leader in the Kerala Assembly VD Satheesan, and business leaders attended the event. More than 3,000 delegates are participating in the investors’ summit.