Frustration was brewing in Maharashtra about projects such as the International Financial Services Authority (IFSCA) being moved to Ahmedabad from Mumbai, even when Uddhav Thackeray was CM. But it was the Vedanta-Foxconn semiconductor plant that went to Gujarat months after Eknath Shinde took over that triggered a political war of words and blame game. Now Vedanta’s chairperson Anil Agrawal has finally broken his silence on the issue, and has warned against politicising it.
Size does matter
Agrawal assured that a microchip factory being set up in Maharashtra will be larger than the one in Gujarat, in an apparent attempt to address all parties involved. He also used an analogy to describe how everyone will get water once a well is dug, before adding that the world wants India to remain a market instead of becoming a manufacturer. In his earlier attempts to diffuse tensions over firms preferring Gujarat over Maharashtra, Agrawal had promised an iPhone manufacturing hub near Mumbai.
Promising more to Maharashtra
While acknowledging that setting up a plant in Gujarat has challenges, Agrawal clarified that they are just making fundamental raw materials which can later be used by every state for making smartphones and TVs. Agrawal also went on to promise bigger projects for Maharashtra, which has also lost a Tata-Airbus facility to its neighbouring state. On the other hand both the ruling regime led by CM Shinde and the Uddhav Thackeray led opposition, have been blaming each other for Maharashtra being undermined.
China’s loss India’s gain
Speaking further on Vedanta’s collaboration with Foxconn at a leadership summit, Agrawal added that it has been clearly told that firms don’t want to deal with China, and India is a preferred alternative. The plant in Gujarat will be able to supply automobile tech and chips needed for laptops within the first two years, and every state will be have access to those components.
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