Punjab minister invites UAE investors with fast-track approvals

Chandigarh, Sep 9 (IANS) Punjab Industries and Commerce Minister Aman Arora on Wednesday invited UAE investors and global businesses to invest in the state’s new Industrial and Business Development Policy of 2026 with fast-track approvals and complete handholding through a single-window platform, Invest Punjab.

Addressing investors and business leaders during the Annual Investment Meeting (AIM) in Dubai, Arora said Punjab “offers a unique blend of robust industrial infrastructure, skilled manpower, vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem, agricultural strength, strategic connectivity and a large consumer market, making it an ideal destination for the UAE and global investors”.

Inviting UAE-based investors, global businesses and the Punjabi diaspora to partner in Punjab’s next phase of industrial growth, Arora highlighted the state’s progressive Industrial and Business Development Policy that offers a flexible incentive framework tailored to diverse investor categories and priority sectors and facilitation through a single-window system.

“Punjab is open for business and ready for investment. We want investors to see Punjab not just as a market, but as a strategic partner for manufacturing, food processing, technology, logistics and global business operations. Our focus is ease of doing business, speedy approvals, policy certainty and maximum handholding for investors,” said Arora.

Under the policy, eligible manufacturing units can avail fiscal incentives up to 100 per cent of eligible fixed capital investment, while units in priority sectors and those in border districts and Kandi areas are eligible for incentives up to 125 per cent, subject to an overall cap of Rs 500 crore.

Key benefits include capital subsidy of up to 20 per cent of eligible fixed capital investment, i.e. up to Rs 10 crore, 75 per cent reimbursement of the net SGST for the eligible period and 100 per cent exemption of electricity duty for eligible new units as well as existing units undertaking expansion, subject to applicable conditions, he added.

The policy also provides employment-linked support and encourages investments in priority and emerging sectors, enabling investors to align incentives with their business and employment plans. The framework extends benefits not only to new projects but also to expansion and modernisation of existing industrial units.

–IANS

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