Chandigarh: Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Sunday said the state has become an automobile hub, as he recalled leading automaker Suzuki’s journey in India beginning from Gurugram four decades ago.
He said Maruti Suzuki’s third plant in Haryana, being set up in Kharkhoda in Sonipat, will be an important milestone in the prosperity of the state as well as the region. The company currently has two plants in the state in Gurugram and Manesar.
The facility in Kharkhoda will have the potential to manufacture 10 lakh passenger vehicles per year, making it one of the largest passenger vehicle manufacturing facilities at a single site in the world.
The first phase of the project will be set up with an investment of over Rs 11,000 crore.
Khattar joined a programme in Gandhinagar in Gujarat to mark 40 years of Suzuki Motor Corporation in India virtually from Kharkhoda.
During the event in Gandhinagar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stones of two key projects of the Suzuki Group in India — the Suzuki Motor Gujarat Electric Vehicle Battery Manufacturing Facility in Hansalpur, Gujarat and the vehicle manufacturing facility in Kharkhoda, Haryana.
During the event in Kharkhoda, Haryana’s Deputy Chief Minister Dushyant Chautala and Home Minister Anil Vij were also present.
“Maruti’s first plant came up in Gurugram four decades ago, then Manesar plant came up. Gurugram become an icon city and in that Maruti has a major contribution,” Khattar said in Kharkhoda.
“When Gurugram plant was set up, many industries flourished in Gurugram and nearby areas because of that plant and over the years the state has now become an automobile hub,” he said.
Many countries are investing in Haryana, but Japan has a special place. Nearly 1,450 units of Japan are working in the country, of which 28 per cent are in Haryana alone, said Khattar.
“We do not believe in B2B, G2G but H2H, i.e. Heart to Heart, relationship,” he said.
Khattar appreciated the decision of Suzuki to set up the third plant in Haryana and said that “it is such a step, through which the 21st century India is moving towards realizing the dream of ‘Self-reliant India’ and ‘Make in India'”.
The chief minister said that in the recent past, Haryana has not only emerged as a preferred destination for the investors, but the confidence of the investors in the state has been continuously strengthened.
From 2019 till today, Rs 40,000 crore worth of investment has come into the state, he said, adding this has been possible due to a congenial atmosphere which the state provides including ease of doing business to cost of doing business.
At present, about 50 per cent of the cars made in India are produced in Haryana, Khattar said.
The corresponding figure for excavators is 80 per cent and for motorcycles 60 per cent.
Khattar said it is the endeavour of the state government that Haryana should take forward the vision of making India a five trillion dollar economy by 2025.
For this, emphasis is being laid on efficient policies, availability of quality infrastructure, ease of doing business, industry-friendly environment and incentive structure, he said.
“We are continuously increasing our exports. The goal of the state government is to double exports in the coming times,” he said.
Khattar also mentioned many major projects given to Haryana by the central government, including Rail Coach Repair Factory, Kundli-Manesar-Palwal Expressway, Kundli-Ghaziabad-Palwal Expressway and National Cancer Institute on the campus of AIIMS in Jhajjar.
On this occasion, Dushyant Chautala said that Sonipat region would also develop on the lines of Gurugram and a large number of ancillary units will come up in Kharkhoda.