After seven days of intense economic development work in India, I’m back in Kentucky, tired but optimistic those efforts will pay off.
In fact, I feel confident that we will be in a position to announce new jobs and investment for Kentucky in the next several months as a result of this trip.
As I wrote the other day, I became the first sitting Kentucky governor to travel to India as part of a strategic effort to increase both trade and investment opportunities between Kentucky and one of the world’s fastest-growing economies.
As governor, it is my goal to strengthen our ties with the world and to send a clear message that Kentucky is open for business.
With the help of Economic Development Secretary Larry Hayes and one of Kentucky’s most enthusiastic ambassadors, First Lady Jane Beshear, accompanying me, I was able to do that.
We were invited to India by NASSCOM, the premier trade body and the chamber of commerce of the information technology industries in India. NASSCOM, which facilitates business and trade in software and services and encourages advancement of research in software technology, also paid for Larry’s, Jane’s and my travel expenses.
While in New Delhi and Mumbai, we met with key government officials and business organizations, as well as several companies that have or are considering future investments in the United States, including Chandra Proteco and Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.
Chandra Proteco, of course, is the company that recently located its Kentucky Copper facility in Morgantown, creating more than 100 jobs and investing more than $30 million.
It makes high-tech copper cables used in power distribution and transmission.
While in Mumbai, I joined company officials in Silvassa in inaugurating their state-of-the-art facility, a visit that was praised in India’s press by Mukul Gupta, group president of the company, as a hopeful sign of great things to come.
Just as we’ve learned with Japanese-based companies and officials, it’s through such relationships that long-lasting ties are built.
This visit was just the beginning of what can and will be a strong and ongoing partnership with India.
And it’s an example of the aggressive kind of work we must do in tough economic times like these to build a foundation for a successful future.