Sas Nagar (Punjab) [India], August 25 (ANI): Punjab's Industry and Commerce, Investment Promotion and Power Minister, Sanjeev Arora, reviewed the functioning of the Mohali Hitech Metal Cluster on Monday.

Interacting with stakeholders, the Minister reaffirmed the state government's commitment to strengthening Punjab's industrial ecosystem in line with the vision of Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann.

He lauded the management of the cluster for successfully running the facility, which supports nearly 80 MSME units engaged in the production of bathroom fittings.

The Minister assured the stakeholders that their concerns including the release of the pending instalment of industry contribution to PSIEC, removal of the 66 KVA High Tension Tower obstructing further expansion, and the operationalization of the Mohali Skill Development Centre to train skilled manpower would be pursued with the concerned authorities on priority.

During his visit, Arora also reviewed the cluster's modern facilities such as the testing lab, design centre, and tool room. He inspected the newly imported equipment and highlighted that the government-shareholders joint venture model would be strengthened to ensure long-term benefits for the industry.

He was accompanied by Principal Secretary, Industry & Commerce, KK Yadav; Director, Surabhi Malik; Punjab Development Commission Member, Vaibhav Maheshwari; and SAS Nagar Deputy Commissioner, Komal Mittal.

Prominent members of the industry and management present on the occasion included BS Anand, Kanwaljit Singh Mahal, Navjot Singh Aulakh, Gurmeet Singh Bhatia, Sanjeev Singh Sethi, Sameer Kapoor, and Rupinder Singh Sachdeva.

Earlier on August 24, Minister Arora also wrote to the Union Government, urging intervention in the matter related to the frozen work visas for foreign truck drivers, particularly Punjabis, with the United States government.

In his letter sent on Saturday, Arora mentioned that the step taken by the US government following the highway accident in Florida, which involved a Punjabi-origin driver, has put the livelihood of 1.5 lakh Punjabi drivers in danger. He further appealed to the Minister of External Affairs and the Indian Embassy to initiate a dialogue with the US Government. The Minister mentioned that the whole Punjabi community is being punished based on one incident. (ANI)