Wednesday, January 4 2006 15:23 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Patna: Guided by the statement of President A P J Abdul Kalam that 'if India has to succeed, Bihar has to prosper', Chief Minister Nitish Kumar along with a 20-member team is leaving for Hyderabad to project Bihar as 'the most happening state' in the eastern region and a potential destination for investment at the three-day Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD).

The NRI meet commencing from January 7 at the state-of-the-art Hyderabad International Convention Centre, to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, will be attended by the Chief Ministers of 12 states.

President A P J Abdul Kalam, who visited Bihar on December 30, would confer the Parvasi Bharatiya Samman awards on 15 NRIs on the concluding day, Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi told sources today (Jan 04, 2006).

He said about 2,500 NRIs and foreign delegates were expected to attend the meet and added, "we have done our home work to showcase investment opportunities in the state by accelerating the structural, fiscal and legal reforms for creating an enabling environment for investment".

To accomplish the mission of bringing the economy of Bihar on par with other developed states, the Chief Minister has already constituted State Investment Promotion Board (SIPB) with power to accord initial approval to investment proposals likely to be received during the NRI meet where Kumar would announce necessary incentives, Modi said.