Orissa reviews progress of 14 greenfield projects

October 6th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Prolonged delays in acquiring land for industrial projects could endanger potential investments worth $100 billion in India, according to an industry lobby report. "Delays in land acquisition procedures for industrial projects are threatening to endanger investments worth $100 billion all over the country in near term," said the report of the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Assocham).

October 5th, 2009 BHUBANESWAR/RANCHI - A day after a noted British paper said steel giant ArcelorMittal was close to pulling out its proposed steel projects in Jharkhand and Orissa, the states Monday said they had not received any communication in this regard. "I have no information on that.

October 5th, 2009 RANCHI - A day after a noted British paper said steel giant ArcelorMittal was close to pulling out of its proposed steel projects in Jharkhand and Orissa, the Jharkhand government Monday said it had not received any communication from the steel maker in this regard. "We have no information that ArcelorMittal is planning to wind up its greenfield steel project in the state," Jharkhand Industries Secretary N.N.

September 23rd, 2009 BHUBANESWAR - With 14 greenfield projects -- accounting for a combined investment of Rs.200,653 crore -- reduced to being non-starters following land acquisition problems, the Orissa government has come down heavily on the promoter-companies. "If the immediate hinterland is not developed where the unit is proposed to be set up, there is bound be social problems in that area," said state agriculture minister Damodar Rout at a seminar Tuesday.

September 17th, 2009 BHUBANESWAR - The Orissa government, which Thursday reviewed the progress of 14 greenfield projects underway in the state, said most of the companies setting up these projects have not completed land acquisition. "Acquiring land is the biggest problem before these mega projects.

July 16th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Five greenfield airports would come up in Karnataka and Sikkim in the next two years, said Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel Thursday. In reply to a question by Congress parliamentarian Naveen Jindal, the minister told the Lok Sabha that four new airports would come up at Shimoga, Gulbarga, Bijapur and Hassan in Karnataka, and another at Pakyong in Sikkim.

July 8th, 2009 NEW DELHI - India will speed up the process of granting iron ore mining licenses to various steel companies, including South Korea's Posco, Steel Minister Virbhadra Singh said here Wednesday. "We are planning to almost double the production of steel and for that we have to speed up greenfield projects," Singh told reporters on the sidelines of a steel conference.

June 30th, 2009 BHUBANESWAR - Accusing the central government of bias in coal mine allocation, Orissa Tuesday demanded more coal to fuel its industrialisation drive. Speaking at a seminar organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), a state official said Orissa gets only 7.67 percent of the total coal allocation though it has 24.29 percent of the total coal reserves in the country.

June 17th, 2009 BHUBANESWAR - Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad Wednesday held discussions with party leaders in Orissa to assess the party's debacle in the assembly and Lok Sabha elections in the state. "Azad held meetings with office bearers as well as with the candidates who were fielded by the party in the election," state Congress spokesperson Kailash Acharya told IANS.

June 6th, 2009 BHUBANESWAR - Britain-based Vedanta Resources, which has invested over Rs.25,000 crore (Rs.250 billion) in different projects in Orissa, was committed to completing all planned projects in the state, its chairman Anil Agarwal said here Saturday. "We have taken a decision for Orissa.

April 8th, 2009 BHUBANESWAR - The Nationalist Congress Party alliance with the Left parties and the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in Orissa is 'only Orissa-specific', NCP chief Sharad Pawar said here Wednesday. 'Our arrangement is only Orissa-specific,' Pawar told a press conference, addressed jointly with Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) politburo member Sitaram Yechury and BJD chief Naveen Patnaik.

March 1st, 2009 NEW DELHI - Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel Saturday laid the foundation of a new greenfield airport at Pakyong in Sikkim and an airport terminal building at Dibrugarh in Assam. The minister, who began his tour to launch airport modernisation projects across the country Feb 20, has so far laid the foundation of nine airport terminal buildings and also inaugurated a swanky departure terminal at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport in Delhi.

February 12th, 2009 BHUBANESWAR - Orissa has been neglected in interim railway budget presented by Railways Minister Lalu Prasad in Parliament Friday, Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said here. 'I am disappointed as Orissa has been neglected,' Patnaik told reporters here, adding that only one new express train was proposed to be introduced in the state in 2009-2010.

January 2nd, 2009 BHUBANESWAR - NRI industrialist and chairman of Britain’s Vedanta Resources Anil Agarwal Saturday said his group will complete all its projects in Orissa despite the credit crunch. 'I assured Chief Minister (Naveen Patnaik) that we will complete our projects,' Agarwal told reporters after talks with the chief minister and senior state government officials here.

December 23rd, 2008 NEW DELHI - Reliance Infrastructure, an Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) company, is a sole bidder for a Rs.26.76-billion (Rs.2,676-crore) greenfield expressway project in the national capital region, the company said Wednesday. 'The company emerged as the sole bidder for 135 kilometres greenfield Eastern Peripheral Expressway project, covering Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh on build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis, in spite of two extensions from NHAI (National Highway Authority of India),' it said in a statement.