Chennai: Chief Minister M K Stalin called up industrialists, business persons and trade leaders in Spain to come over to Tamil Nadu and make investment in various sectors, particularly defence, bio-technology, pharmaceuticals, food processing and desalination and water purification.
The State, the second biggest economy in India, was already a leader in industries like automobiles, electric vehicles, electronic equipment, leather goods, non-leather footwear and garments, and had been investors’ first port of call, Stalin told the participants of the investment conclave held at Madrid in Spain.
The conclave itself was titled ‘Investors’ First Port of Call’ and drew top industrialists and leaders of industrial houses in Spain, whose companies had already found Tamil Nadu to be an ideal place to start their ventures.
Acknowledging Spain’s presence in the industrial landscape of the State, he named companies like Roca, Urbaser, Ingeteam, Ampo and Aphinox that had already set up shop and invited other investors, assuring them all help to open ventures, extending concessions through trade policies and to address issues like human resources.
On his maiden visit to Spain, the Chief Minister sought to strike a cultural chord with the people and investors of the European nation by comparing Jallikattu and Spanish bull fighting and likening the popularity of Spanish language with that of Tamil.
Just like the bull taming sport in Spain, Tamil Nadu, too, had Jallikattu which is the symbol of Tamil culture and the State government had now constructed a stadium exclusively for the game, which the Spanish industry honchos could see when they came to Tamil Nadu, the Chief Said.
Spanish was the second largest spoken language enjoying the status of official language in 20 countries, while Tamil has a tradition and an antiquity dating 5000 years, he said.
Speaking in praise of Spain, where he found people living happily and following cultural traditions like Tamil Nadu, Stalin said that the football loving nation with a vibrant culture had a collective artistic taste that was evident in every nook and corner of the places that he had seen exuding through the buildings and streets.
In the industrial front, too, Spain was the fourth biggest economy in the European Union with eight Fortune 500 companies and. 20 Fortune 2000 companies having their headquarters in the country.
Introducing himself as the democratically elected Chief Minister of the State that was the land of Thiruvalluvar, whose epic poetic work, Thirukural, had been translated into 200 languages, he said his party was started 75 years ago and had been elected six times to power.
His state had the industrial climate that was favourable for investments, which was evident from the fact that 130 Fortune 500 companies had set up shop there already.
