Jharkhand – “the Mineral Capital of India”

Introduction  

India, in the recent times has been considered as a land of opportunities and true to its words, investing into India has been fruitful for multinational companies world-wide. The first step to investing into India is to open a company into India and starting business in the country. India comprises of various states and union territories, one such attractive state for investments  related opportunities in Jharkhand.   

The State of Jharkhand is one of the newest state which is located in the northeastern part of the country close to West Bengal. Jharkhand is bordered by the states of Bihar to the north, West Bengal to the east, Odisha to the south, Chhattisgarh to the west, and Uttar Pradesh to the northwest. The capital city is Ranchi. 

Jharkhand has an area of 28,833 square miles (74,677 square kilometers). Nearly all of the state lies within the Chota Nagpur plateau, which consists of a series of plateaus, hills, and valleys. It is part of India’s extensive Deccan plateau region.  

Jharkhand has been divided into the following physical division such as (1) the Pat Plateau (2). The Ranchi Plateau (3). The Hazaribagh Plateau (4). Lower River Valley of Plains & hills  

The estimated population of Jharkhand in 2023 is 40.6 million and is the 14th most populated state in India. The population size of Jharkhand is equivalent to that of Poland. The literacy rate is 66.41%. The gender ratio in Jharkhand is 947 females to 1,000 males. Jharkhand is linguistically diverse, with speakers of Indo-Aryan, Dravidian, and Austroasiatic languages. Hindi is the official language of the state along with Santhali, Urdu, Bengali and English. For tourist areas, Jharkhand is known for various temples, natural beauty such as Parks and Waterfalls.  

The economy of Jharkhand is the 19^th largest economy with the gross state domestic product (GSDP) for 2024–25 estimated to be around Rs 4.7 trillion around USD 56.78 billion which is a 9.8% increase from the 2023–24 GSDP. The GDP OF Jharkhand is equivalent to the GDP of a small nation in Europe like Solvania. Jharkhand’s economy is projected to grow by 7.7% in the 2024–25 fiscal year.  

Jharkhand is one of the world’s richest mineral zones, with 40% of India’s mineral reserves and 29% of its coal reserves. The state’s key industries include mining, engineering, iron and steel production, and chemicals.  

Large deposits of coal and iron ore support concentration of industry, in cities such as Jamshedpur which is also called the Steel City of India, Dhanbad also called as the Coal Capital of India, Bokaro, Hazaribagh and its capital city Ranchi. The very famous company called as the Tata Steel, has its corporate office and main plant in Tatanagar, Jharkhand.  

Jharkhand is the only state in India to produce coking coal, uranium, and pyrite. The state is also a leading producer of coal, mica, kyanite and copper. Value of mineral production (excluding fuel minerals) during 2018-19 stood at Rs. 2,510.99 crore approximately USD 356.22 million. 

The state’s coal reserves are estimated at around 33 billion tonnes. Jharkhand accounts for 20-25% of the total steel produced in the country. In FY22, Jharkhand produced 72 thousand tonnes of limestone that was valued at Rs. 3.5 crore approximately USD 0.42 million.  

The state is the largest producer of tussar silk (a non-mulberry silk) in the country with 76.4% share in the total output.  In 2018-19, raw silk production in the state was 2,375 metric tonnes. 

Agriculture is another major economic sector. Farmers in Jharkhand produce several crops such as rice, wheat, maize, pulses, potatoes, and vegetables such as tomato, carrots, cabbage, brinjal, pumpkin, and papaya. Other important industries include the cottage and handloom industry and IT  

According to the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), cumulative foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows in Jharkhand stood USD 2.66 billion between October 2019-March 2024. As of March 2023, the value of proposed investments as filed by the Industrial Entrepreneur Memorandum (IEM) stood at Rs. 424 crore ie. approximately USD 51.6 million. 

The state of Jharkhand has launched various schemes to promote and encourage the industries in the State. The Government has launched schemes for the benefit of the MSMEs such as the new MSME units receive an 80% rebate on net VAT payable for five years, up to a maximum of 100% of the total fixed capital investment. Further various Capital Incentive Schemes such as upto Rs 10 crore in capital incentives are available, with 50% paid at the time of commission and the remaining 50% paid at the end of the first year of operations. Various subsidies are available for captive power generation, SGST, and electricity duty. The government also provides grants for industrial areas and estates, and offers advisory services to MSME industries.   

While there are other industrial benefits provided by the government such as Single Window Clearance system, Interactive Systems to identify approvals, Easy access to all information procedure, timelines, formats etc., Single joint inspection in 14 labour laws, Inspections once in 5 years, Inspection within 72 hours: PCB, Forest, Urban, Commercial Tax and Labour Department, Auto Renewal of CTO1 on self-certification and No pollution clearance required for 58 sectors.  

 Jharkhand is also home to various multinational companies such as Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Wipro, Infosys, HCL Technologies, and Startup guruz. Various industrial companies such as Sandeep Industries, Chhotanagpur Rope Works Private Limited, Khalari Cements Limited, Niranjan Hi-tech Limited, Adya Enterprises Private Limited, ESL Steel Limited, Tata Cummins Private Limited, New Engineering Works.   

In a bid to increase infrastructure development, the government has asserted that Rs. 2 lakh crore which is approximately USD 24 billion for highway network which shall commence from 2024. The ambitious new solar policy (Jharkhand Solar Policy, 2022) is aimed at increasing clean energy capacity up to 4,000 megawatts in the next five years. The Government has also unveiled an industrial policy that intended to attract investments up to Rs. 1 lakh crore approximately USD 1.3 trillion, to build a centre for electronics system design and production. The government has also allocated Rs. 6389 crore approximately USD 771.62 million towards roads and bridges projects in the state and has approved 14 highway projects worth Rs. 670 crore approximately USD 91.89 million in the state. 

Jharkhand has two approved Special Economic Zones (SEZs), including one for Adani Power and another in Adityapur. The Adani Power SEZ is located in the Godda district of Jharkhand and includes two 800 MW supercritical units, a water pipeline, and a power evacuation system. The Adityapur SEZ is located in the Saraikela-Kharsawan district of Jharkhand and is known for its automobile and auto components. It was the first SEZ to be notified in Jharkhand and in the automobile sector.  

Jharkhand has a river port and a dry port. The dry port located at Laxminagar in Jamshedpur. As per the Exim tariff originating from Jamshedpur is to the tune of 400/500 container monthly. The dry port currently has the capacity to handle 2000 containers per month. The dry port are beneficial for local industries that require to send the shipment to Kolkata, Haldia, Paradip, and Vishakhapatnam by road.  

The river port called as the Sahibganj multi-modal port or Sahibganj River Port is a multi-modal port situated at Sahebganj on the Ganga. The Multimodal terminal, with capacity of 3.03 MTPA and is expected to handle variety of cargo such as coal, stone chips, cement, food grains, fertilizer, and sugar. The total exports from the state stood at USD 1.9 billion for the year 2023-24.