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Goa CM bemoans politics of anti-industry agitations

Goa Chief Minister Luizinho Faleiro has said that investments in the industrial sector in Goa had virtually come to a standstill because of ''inspired agitation with political overtones.''

Faleiro, who was industry minister in the Pratapsingh Rane government for four years, said that if Goa presented a nagative picture, neither tourism nor industry would prosper in the state, resulting in large-scale unemployment for the educated and skilled youths in the state.

He claimed to be aware of the problems faced by some of the new industrial units and commercial establishments due to the ban of power connections by the Goa bench of the Bombay High Court.

Faleiro said that he had finalised a policy document for multi-dimensional growth of information technology projects in close cooperation with the educational institutions, but a few ''negative-minded people'' were agitating against certain industrial units under the pretext of environmental concern and in utter disregard of experts' opinion.

Faleiro said that the state government had been encouraging technical institutions to come up in order to provide the right kind of manpower for these industries.

He further added that being a natural port, with a dependable airport and with the Konkan Railways, Goa has become more accessible to the investors.

Faleiro insisted that investments are waiting to happen but for certain politicians who were sending wrong signals to investors by evoking agitations for their selfish gains.

He regretted that his own colleagues, including the present industry minister, Churchill Alemao, have been party to such negative propaganda as in the Coca-Cola unit at Verna. He said, ''It was time, politics took a backseat over economic growth for the benefit of the state.''

UNI

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