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Gujarat, India's leading industrial state is a manufacturing powerhouse with
world-class production capabilities in textiles, petrochemicals, Pharmaceuticals
and agro-based products.
Situated on the western tip of India, Gujarat has the longest coastline in
the country. The state has 41 ports that handle most of the cargo in the
country, including India's only chemical handling port located at Dahej, in
Bharuch district The state has extensive road, rail and air networks. The
recently commissioned Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminals in Dahej stand to
augment its capabilities in the power sector and benefit industry. The state
also has India's largest hydro project, the Sardar Sarovar project.
Gujarat is rich in bio-resources and has a forest cover of 1.88 billion
hectares. It has 10.7 million hectares of highly diversified cropping area and
is a leading producer of horticultural crops. It is rich in mineral resources
like limestone, lignite and bauxite.
Industrial estates in Gujarat have proven to be extremely popular with
businesses. Jamnagar in Gujarat is the world's largest industrial estate while
Kandla has Asia's first and India's largest multi-product Special Economic Zone
(SEZ).
The chemical industry in Gujarat accounts for half of the annual investment
in the state and contributes to more than 20 per cent of India's chemical
output.
It is home to the world's largest grassroots refinery in Jamnagar, set up by
India's leading business house, the Reliance Group. Essar and Indian
Petrochemicals Corporation Ltd are other large chemical manufacturers in the
state. Gujarat also accounts for 40 per cent of India's pharmaceutical
production with major players like Cadila, Sun Pharma, Alembic, Torrent and
Sarabhai being present in the state.
Apart from large-scale textile manufacturing units, Gujarat's gem and
jewellery industry processes 80 per cent of the diamonds in the country and its
immensely successful state cooperative federations have brought prosperity to
rural Gujarat. Amul, a brand owned by the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing
Federation, enjoys a significant market share in India's processed food sector.
The state is keen to leverage its natural resource base and entrepreneurial
spirit to sustain its leadership position. To attract investment Gujarat has set
up single window facilities at the district level. Gujarat's Industrial
Promotion Board is also in the process of setting up kiosks at all important
places to disseminate information regarding regulations governing new
investment.
The state has actively sought private participation to improve existing
infrastructure facilities. It was the first in the country to develop port
facilities, estates and roads in conjunction with the private sector.
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