Uttar Pradesh Minister for MSME, Investment and Exports Siddharth Nath Singh said that he received several questions regarding the perks that the state could offer. (Bloomberg image)

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s government has proposed to provide several facilities to giant corporations of the US, including FedEx, UPS, Cisco, Adobe, Lockheed Martin, Honeywell, Boston Scientific, and others if they shift factories and bases from China to the state of Uttar Pradesh. After Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call to the states to use the current situation to woo global companies that want to exit China in the wake of the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, the UP government held a video conference with nearly 100 investors and companies from the US, The Indian Express reported.

Uttar Pradesh Minister for MSME, Investment and Exports Siddharth Nath Singh said that he received several questions regarding the perks that the state could offer if the companies shift their bases from China. They were told they could get tailor-made provisions per their needs.

For example, FedEx and UPS were told they can use the proposed Jewar international airport to start their operations. Siddharth Nath Singh also said that medical devices maker Boston Scientific was asked about the incentives UP could offer; it was told that the state is willing to discuss changes according to their requirements. Further, the minister also suggested that Lucknow would be an excellent location for the company. Similarly, defence firms such as Lockheed Martin were told that they could use the Uttar Pradesh defence corridor.

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Coronavirus has made the situation worse for China, where the global companies were already making up their minds to move their bases out due to the US-China trade war. The trade war between both countries was leading to a continuous increase in the prices of products, which was hitting the profit margins of the companies. Though India could not make the most out of the situation then, the centre and the states seem to want to leave no stone unturned this time to attract the foreign investors.

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Meanwhile, Siddharth Nath Singh said to the US companies that the state has already announced various incentives such as capital subsidy, land subsidy and a bouquet of incentives and there are 90 lakh MSME units which could be used for multiple purposes. On top of that, the state government has recently discussed measures including an amendment to the state’s industrial policy to attract companies that are keen to shift their base from China.