Overview
- The state government instructed officials on Friday to pick five cities outside Bengaluru with airport links and basic infrastructure for targeted industrial growth.
- Karnataka will design special incentives to attract investment in priority areas such as semiconductors, aerospace and defence, clean mobility and cell manufacturing.
- The chief minister directed all departments to process single-window industrial approvals within the stipulated timelines under the integrated system that covers 22 departments and 119 services.
- Officials noted Karnataka has drawn Rs 5.58 lakh crore in manufacturing investment over the past three years and ranks third nationally for inflows while it stands ninth on the NITI Aayog investor-friendly index, a ranking the government wants to improve.
- Next steps include departmental work to identify the five cities, ministers' consultations to enforce approval timelines, and the finalisation of incentive packages, a move that could shift jobs outside Bengaluru and intensify competition with other states for manufacturing projects.