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“Karnataka can lead the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The industry has upgraded itself to the latest technologies, including nano-tech, robotics, and high-end electronics,” said the State’s Minister for Large and Medium Scale Industries K J George.
400 plus MNCs
Interacting with the members of the Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI) here on Friday, he said that the State is home to 400-plus MNCs with global R&D centres. “We are one of the top five R&D ecosystems of the world and the second best ecosystem for start-ups. Karnataka is one of the most entrepreneurial States in the country with over 5,000 active start-ups,” he said.
Karnataka is all set to launch an exclusive Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Data Sciences and Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Bengaluru and is ranked second in India with 2,102 patent applications, he added.
Attracting FDI
The State is a ₹12-lakh-crore economy (at current prices) and ranks second in terms of attracting FDI, he said. So far, the State has attracted cumulative FDI of ₹178,547 crore from April 2000 to March 2018.
The State stood first, accounting for 38.48 per cent (₹152,118 crore) of the total investment intentions in the country as of December 2017, he added.
“With $82 billion in total exports, the State tops in manufacturing excellence,” he claimed.
George said the State has over 160 industrial hubs in tier II cities such as Hubballi-Dharwad, Mysuru, Mangaluru, Belagavi, Davanagere, Shivamogga, Kalaburgi, Tumkur, Bidar, Ballari, and Raichur.
He said 26 SEZs, catering to IT/ITeS, engineering, aerospace, pharmaceutical, biotech, textiles and food processing are backed by four National Investment and Manufacturing Zones (NIMZs) in Tumakuru, Kolar, Bidar and Kalaburagi.
Industrial corridors
According to George, Karnataka is working on two industrial corridors: the Chennai-Bengaluru Industrial Corridor and the Bengaluru- Mumbai Economic Corridor. “The State is aiming to tap opportunities to create logistics, industrial infrastructure, rail and road connectivity for freight movement,” he said.
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