Washington DC [USA]: The Karnataka delegation led by Large and Medium Industries Minister MB Patil which is on a business promotion visit to the USA on Tuesday discussed with International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Karnataka’s strategic position in leveraging the “China + 1” strategy.

In the meeting which was attended by top officials of the IMF including its Deputy Managing Director Gita Gopinath, the broader Indian growth narrative was analysed. Meanwhile, members in the meeting also deliberated on decongesting Bengaluru to support increased investments.

Minister MB Patil stressed the necessity of strategies to anticipate and address skilled labour force imbalances.

In a meeting with USISPF (US-India Strategic Investment Forum), investor interest in the upcoming health tech park near the Bengaluru International Airport was examined. It was also felt that strategies were needed to boost medical tourism in the state of Karnataka.

MB Patil stated that potential partnerships for leveraging blockchain technology to address certain e-governance or municipal challenges would be explored. The members also shared ideas on training curricula for Industry 4.0-related skills.

The discussion with representatives of GE Vernova witnessed the exchange of ideas on exploring the potential for component manufacturing in Karnataka. Further, the need to investigate opportunities for Pump Storage Projects to allow storage of excess solar, wind or other sources for periods of high demand was discussed.

Besides, the meeting focussed on exploring partnerships with Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) firms for renewable energy projects (both onshore and offshore).

In a meeting with global aircraft major Boeing, Minister MB Patil emphasised exploring potential investments in logistics centres, P2F (passenger to freight) conversions, and pilot and crew training centres near Karnataka airports.

Talks with members of GE Healthcare centred on identifying potential collaboration opportunities in upskilling of workforce in Artificial Intelligence or Machine Learning which is likely to play a critical role in the next decade of life sciences. The scope for development and strengthening of the product supplier base in Karnataka was also examined.

Greta Lundeberg, VP, Niccola Porreca, Director (Boeing), Mukesh Aghi, President &CEO, Susan Ritchie, VP (UPISPF) George Pickart, MD, GE Vernova, John Schaeffler, Global Executive Leader, Andrew Quinn, ED (GE Health Care) were among those who attended the meetings. Principal Secretary S Selvakumar and Karnataka Industries department Commissioner Gunjan Krishna, were also present.