The setting up of mini-industrial estates in remote rural areas is on the cards with the aim of promoting non-traditional products being produced in these areas and generate employment opportunities for skilled and semi-skilled persons at their doorsteps in the Punjab.
Official sources on Saturday told Business Recorder that the government has accorded special attention to the promotion and development of cottage industries and for this purpose Rs 40 crore would be spent to accelerate the pace of exports and enhance the productivity of Punjab.
The development of industrial sector was on top of government agenda and during the current fiscal period Rs 1.30 billion were being spent on the development of industrial sector in the province.
The government has already introduced business-friendly policies to ensure establishment of maximum number of industries in private sector and to expand the scope of setting up industries in rural areas for bringing industrial revolution in the Punjab.
In order to facilitate the SMEs the Punjab government would soon initiate a "Micro-Finance" loaning scheme with an amount of Rs one billion during current fiscal for the development of cottage industries and creating self-employment opportunities in the province.
The concept of introducing this scheme was to extend loan facilities to the interested persons for setting up small scale and cottage industries in the Punjab. The Punjab government has evolved a strategy to develop business friendly environment to ensure Direct Foreign Investment (DFI) in various fields of industrial sector in the province.