K’taka govt constitutes Strategic Investment Committee; Sajjan Jindal to guide reconstituted IKF board

Bengaluru:  In a first, Karnataka government has constituted the Strategic Investments Committee (SIC) to guide for attracting investments to the state.

Further, the government has also reconstituted the board of Invest Karnataka Forum (IKF) which functions under the chairmanship of Minister for Large and Medium Industries M. B Patil. This has been done considering the current rapidly evolving global industrial landscape.

The SIC committee under the chairmanship of MB Patil, comprises professionals from various fields such as Private Equity, Venture Capital firms, Startups, Philanthropist organisations and experts from different industries.

Speaking about the formation SIC, Patil said that the diverse experience of members would help in defining the future of Karnataka’s Industrial ecosystem for the coming decades. They would guide the department by understanding the investor requirements and translating those learnings as inputs for the policy formulation, he added.

Saying that the members would help the state in establishing regional connections across countries such as America, Germany, France, and the Netherlands in the West, and Japan, Korea, and Taiwan in the East, he emphasised that the goal is to make Karnataka the most preferred investment destination for both global and national investors.

Patil explained, “The members would also play a key role in devising long-term sector-wise road maps with structural interventions, making Industries the engine of growth for Karnataka, Additionally, the committee would play a pivotal role in continuously evaluating progress on pre-defined parameters such as ease of doing business.” Accordingly, strategy adjustments would be made to foster an investor-friendly environment in the state, resulting in increased investments, the minister emphasised.

The members of SIC include Mruthyunjaya Hiremath, Director, AMD Inc, Ram. T Chandnani, MD, CBRE Pvt Ltd, Prashant Prakash, MD, Accel, Nikhil Kamath, Co-founder, Zerodha, Ravi Manchanda, SMD, Pepper Global. Ashwin Kumaraswamy, Investment Director, Mercia Group, Gauri Shankar Nagabhushanam, CEO, CapitaLand – India Business Parks, and Kasaragod Ullas Kamath, former Joint MD of Jyothy Labs and Chairman of FICCI Karnataka State Council.

In addition to this, the Additional Chief Secretary/Principal Secretary in Commerce and Industries Department would be the Member and the Commissioner for Industrial Development & Director of Industries and Commerce would be the Member Secretary of the committee.

Sajjan Jindal, a renowned steel industrialist who is the Chairman and MD of JSW Limited, has been nominated as the Director and co-chairperson of the new board. It has incorporated industry nominees from the sectors of Software and IT, Auto, Aerospace and Defence, Machine Tools, and Manufacturing Support Services as members.

Geetanjali Kirloskar, Chairperson and MD, Kirloskar Systems (Auto sector), Arvind Melligeri, Chairman and CEO, Aequs Inc (Aerospace & Defence), Ankit Fatehpuria, Co-founder, Zetwerk (Manufacturing Support Services Machine Tools sector), and Vijay Krishnan Venkatesan, MD, Kennametal (Machine Tools sector) are nominated as the members of the board.

The reconstituted board will work towards promoting the state’s industrial ecosystem and bring a fresh perspective to attract investment to the state, Patil has opined.

–IANS