Maha govt plans VC fund for export-oriented units

Mumbai: Maharashtra is mulling to start a venture capital fund which will help enterprises focused on exports, a minister has said.

The western state is also in the process of setting up an export promotion council under a newly adopted industrial policy, Jaykumar Rawal, the minister for food and drugs administration, tourism and protocol, said.

He made the remarks speaking at the World Trade Centers Association Day late last evening.

The state government "will soon introduce a venture capital fund for export-oriented units," a statement from the organisers of the event said.

It, however, did not divulge the corpus of the fund or any other details. The budget session of the state assembly is on at present.

The budget for FY20 has proposed 50 industrial parks at taluka level for micro, small and medium enterprises, the minister was quoted as saying.

Looking at the demand for cashews from the state, Rs 100 crore has been allocated for cashew processing industry to push the exports, he said.

Similarly, for the dairy industry, the government is offering Rs 50 per kg to milk federations for pushing exports of milk powder, he said.

Rawal said the state contributes for a fourth of the overall exports from India and added that the Government is committed to enhance on the same.

It will also be expanding tourism police teams in pockets with high tourist footfalls like Sindhudurg, Aurangabad and Nagpur besides Shirdi and Mumbai, he said.