Telengana ready to create Korean cluster, find local partners for Korean SMEs
Honorary Consul General Suresh Chukkapalli said that the state is not only keen on attracting large Korean conglomerates but also Korean small and medium enterprises which are the backbone of Korea.
Hyderabad: One of the favourite destinations for the Korean companies in India, the South Indian state of Telengana is working hard to develop a Korean cluster, and pave way for Korean small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to collaborate with local partners.
Honorary Consul General of the Republic of Korea in Hyderabad, Suresh Chukkapalli informed that for a long the state government and industry together had been looking at creating a Korean cluster with walk to work and walk to home concept. Suresh Chukkapalli, who is the Chairman Emeritus, Phoenix Group, Hyderabad said this while addressing a high level Korean delegation during the Korea-India Economic Cooperation Forum in Hyderabad recently.
Duddilla Sridhar Babu, Minister of Information Technology, Electronics & Communications (ITE&C) and Industries & Commerce (I&C), Telangana, and South Korean Ambassador Chang Jae-bok were also present on the occasion.
“The government is quite keen to give land and other support (for Korean cluster). It is not the Korean large conglomerates such as Hyundai and Samsung we are keen on bringing to Telangana but also many Korean small and medium enterprises which are the backbone of Korea. But since they small and medium in size, they need local partners. We need to bring together the Korean technology, Korean small and medium entrepreneurs as well as trade bodies such as FICCI and CII,” Chukkapali who has been instrumental in bringing huge Korean investment to the state, and also promoting bilateral trade.
In 2022, the South Korean government has conferred Suresh Chukkapalli with its country’s prestigious “Trade Day” award for promoting bilateral trade between the two countries.
While narrating the developments that took place ever since he assumed the responsibility of Honorary Consul General of the Republic of Korea in Hyderabad in 2016, he said the Honorary Consulate General had been supporting the Korean and industry industries on both sides.
He said it Ambassador Chang Jae-bok visited Hyderabad four times during his 3-year tenure. Due to excellent cooperation and coordination with the Telengana government, a good number of companies entered the state. Coming of giant Korean textile brand YoungOne was one of the greatest achievements for the state. It’s the first unit is already started. Nine more units are getting ready by the end of the year. Probably in 3-4 years, it will generate employment for 10,000 people. Another global brand The North Face also entered the state.
Chukkapalli said, “Another achievement was collaboration of ASIP with APACT for semiconductor chip-packaging unit, as the MoU has happened, collaborations are going at very fast pace. The state government has given the land and they are waiting for some clearances from the central government. The moment the green nod comes, this will be a path-breaking development, which is a matter of pride not only for Telengana but for India as well because it is the first chip packaging unit in the country.
Without disclosing the name of the company, he said that in about three-month time, a large investment in the state will be another path breaking world-class facility which will come to the satte as related clearances have been almost achieved.
