A business delegation from UK arrived in the city on Tuesday to explore business opportunities taking forward the process of foreign
investors now looking beyond bigger cities. Headed by the British trade minister Lord Mervyn Davies, this is said to be the first high powered foreign delegation to visit the city.
The minister, in a press release, has called Nagpur as one of the engine rooms for India's growth. "UK firms should look beyond the obvious destinations like New Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore and explore the potential of emerging cities such as Nagpur," he noted. Nagpur has been chosen as an emerging destination after a detailed study conducted on similar towns of India. The study was conducted by UK India Business Council (UKIC).
While the minister would be visiting the city on Wednesday, the delegation arrived a day before. The delegates led by the deputy high commissioner Vicki Treadell held a meeting with officials of the Maharashtra Airport Development Company (MADC) and also paid a visit to the Mihan site, off Wardha Road. The delegates were addressed by MADC's vice-chairman-cum-managing director R C Sinha.
President of Vidarbha Industries Association (VIA) Pravin Tapadia said the local industrialists indeed look forward for exploring newer vistas during this visit. It is first time that a trade minister is interacting with local industrialists. Apart from the logistics business in Mihan, there are abundant investment opportunities in the power sector. Also, proposals in manufacturing sector can be looked into, he said.
Meanwhile, Treadell has observed, "UK is always seeking to expand its business relations in India. Nagpur is poised to become a major commercial centre and we would like to partner Nagpur in its growth story. British companies are already active in Nagpur and I hope that the UKIBC delegation that the minister is supporting will be able to generate further business partnerships."
As far as existing UK-Nagpur links are concerned, a British firm Scott Wilson has done the master planning for Mihan SEZ and has now been awarded contact for designing the runway and terminal building. Mott Macdonald are the consultant for power transmission in Mihan. While PWS, a Northern Ireland-based company has a manufacturing facility in Nagpur for making road signs, said a press release issued by the British high commission.