J'khand can exceed national GDP growth by 4-5%: Jaitley

Hailing the efforts of Jharkhand Chief Minister Raghubar Das for organising maiden global investors meet in the state, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday said that the BJP-led Jharkhand can now exceed the national economic growth average by 4-5 per cent as the state is free from 'stigma of corruption' and political instability.

"Jharkhand has a potential today with its natural resources, and potential for investment to grow at least 4-5 per cent ahead of the national average. Today, it is marginally 1 per cent above national average," the finance minister said at Momentum Jharkhand, the global investors' summit.

After a spate of coalition governments, the mineral-rich state has now a stable government and huge investment opportunities for investors, Jaitley said, adding that when Jharkhand was a part of Bihar, a political model was developing which envisaged that you don't need economic development to win elections.

"But you merely have to indulge in some kind of social engineering and by that process of social engineering, you could win the elections. And for a fairly long period, social engineering in preference to developmental policies dominated the centre stage of this region," Jaitley said.

"Initially, there was political instability, and if I can be more candid, there was a stigma of corruption and therefore in today's world where investor is the chooser, and investor has multiple options, he does not like to invest or fish in troubled territories," the finance minister said.

Terming Jharkhand as a land of immense potential, Chief Minister Raghubar Das said that the state is rich in natural resources like coal and minerals and is striving to become a developed state in the country.

"Jharkhand as a young state of India is striving to become one of the developed andprosperous states of India. It is a land of immense potential," Das said while addressing the inaugural session of the summit at the Khelgaon in Ranchi.

"Jharkhand was one of the richest mineralised regions in the world possessing 40 per cent of mineral resources of the country. Though we are known for our rich mineral deposits and steel and automobile industry, I feel our biggest assets are our people. Nearly 60 per cent of our population is between 15 and 59 years of age," he said.

The Global Summit's brand ambassador and ace cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni said, "Apart from a mineral-rich state, Jharkhand is also second largest producer of potatoes and peas in the country. The country has immense potential of investments and industry captains must come here to explore the available opportunities."