Vibrant Gujarat Summit: 20 Years of Economic Transformation

Ahmedabad, Dec 21 (PTI) Gujarat's industrial growth from 2003 to 2023 has been meteoric, aided by a government-sponsored global investor summit which has served as a platform to showcase opportunities existing in various sectors and helped in improving socio-economic standards of the state, according to industry leaders.

Over the years, the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit (VGGS) has moved away from being a government event to become an industry-centric gathering and helped in the state becoming an industrial powerhouse, they said.







While 76 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) were signed when the global summit was first held in 2003, the number has swelled to a staggering 2,747 agreements, expressing investment intention of Rs 3.37 lakh crore so far in the state, ahead of the 10th edition of the mega business meet to be held from January 10-12, 2024, in Gandhinagar, government officials said.


The transformation of Gujarat is a tale of turning adversity into prosperity with the foundation of economic growth of the state laid way back in 2001 when Narendra Modi first took oath as the chief minister.



Reeling under the January 26, 2001, devastating earthquake in Kutch -- the third largest and second most destructive earthquake in India over the last two centuries which killed around 14,000 people -- and battling apathy of the then-central government and adverse socio-economic factors, Gujarat's investment climate had faced a big question mark.

The journey of Gujarat's growth can now be assessed from the fact that from being a merely USD 13 billion economy in 2001, it achieved the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) of USD 280 billion in 2023, according to government figures.

With the aim to transform the state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as the then-chief minister, envisioned the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit in 2003.

Torrent Group Chairman Emeritus Sudhir Mehta said Modi converted the Vibrant Gujarat
summit from a government event in the first edition to an industry-centric function.

He recalled that when the summit was first organised in 2003, nobody was sure how many people will turn up, but the small venue of Tagore Hall in Ahmedabad was found packed.

"First five seats were occupied by government officials. (Modi) observed that some of the business people were standing, or sitting in 10th or 15th row, and hence he realised he needed to take corrective action," Mehta said.

From the second edition of the event, the venue was changed and better seating arrangements were made, he maintained.

The summit is now being organised at the Mahatma Mandir Convention and Exhibition Centre in Gandhinagar.

As CM, Modi made it clear to officials that it was an industry function rather than a government event, Mehta said.

BK Goenka, Chairman, Welspun Group, said as a participant since the first edition, he has seen how the VGGS has boosted investment in Gujarat and led to "unparalleled growth and improvement in socio-economic standards of our state".

Chairman of GIFT City and former Union finance secretary Hasmukh Adhia said the summit has grown in size over the years.

Former chief secretary PK Laheri, who was among the close group of people who worked to organise the first edition of the investor meet, recalled: "When we started the summit, Prime Minister Modi (then CM) thought it would be better for him to be fully involved in it."

While 76 MoUs were signed in the first edition of the summit, the number swelled to 675 MoUs in 2009 and further to 28,360 in 2019. Till December 20, 2023, as many as 2,747 MoUs, expressing investment intention of Rs 3.37 lakh crore in the state, have been inked, said the officials.

The rise in investments, including by some leading global investors, through the biennial summit reflects on the rapid growth and development across all sectors in Gujarat.



With the central theme of "Gateway to the Future," the 10th edition of the VGGS offers a chance to tackle common challenges and pave the way for global sustainable development through increased international cooperation.

Industry leaders said the economic and industrial transformation of Gujarat from 2003 to 2023 has been meteoric and the summit has played a key role in this change.

Business experts are of the view that with Prime Minister Modi's focus on all-round development of Gujarat, this event will continue to be the focal point for policy makers, industry leaders and the other architects of economic transformation.