By Bijender Sharma
SHIMLA: The State-Level Single Window Clearance and Monitoring Authority (SLSWC&MA) in its 45th meeting held here today granted approval to two new proposals for setting up of industrial projects and one expansion proposal with total investment of Rs. 18.15 crore and generating employment to 84 persons.

New units include M/S Him Fresh Produce which will be setting up Integrated Cold Chain in Kotkhai area of district Shimla and M/S Growell Agro-System in Paonta Sahib, in district Sirmour to manufacture pesticides formulation, insecticide, fungicide and herbicide etc.

Chief Minister Prof. Prem Kumar Dhumal presided over the meeting. It was also decided in the meeting that with a view to maintain and conserve the environment, polluting, low employment generating and high power consuming new industrial units of arc and induction furnaces were discouraged in the State.

Chief Minister said that the environment protection was one of the major areas of concern of the Government. He said that the State had launched an exhaustive campaign to make State polythene free by involving NGOs and other voluntary organizations engaged in environment protection activities. He said that high polluting industries had been responsible for causing immense carbon emissions disturbing the ecology in the area and adding to the global warming. He said that it would be in the best interest of the state in particular and country in general that high polluting industrial units were discouraged. He said that the existing polluting industrial units had also been advised to incorporate modern anti-pollution implements into their plants so that emission of green house gases were minimized and completely checked in the near future.

Prof. Dhumal directed the authorities to motivate entrepreneurs to invest in Himachal Pradesh in the units based upon local raw material generating employment and self-employment to the local people. He said that the Industrial Policy of the State was required to be implemented in letter and spirit, especially with regard to the employment condition of 70 percent to the local educated unemployed youth at all level. He said that skill upgradation programmes were also being conducted for the youth which had vast employment scope for the youth.

Chief Minister said that the State had best industrial friendly environment where interests of the investors were being protected besides extending them all basic clearances through the State Level Single Window Clearance and Monitoring Authority. He said that the State Government had simplified the cumbersome paper procedure for registration of new industrial proposals so that no time was wasted in observing codal formalities for the same. He said that the State Government had created separate police and excise districts for industrial areas besides opening up revenue and drug control offices with a view to provide such facilities to them locally. He said that the State Government had also constituted Baddi Barotiwala Nalagarh Development Authority to oversee planned development of the industrial area and ensure all basic amenities to them conveniently for their smooth operation of industrial activities.