These include three manufacturing, two multiplex and two hotel projects and one industrial park.

The manufacturing projects include two cotton yarn units in Ludhiana and a beer manufacturing unit in Pathankot, while the IT Park is to come up on 53.63 acres on the Chandigarh-Ludhiana Road, near Kohara.

The remaining three include a hotel and a multiplex project in Chhatbir village on the Zirakpur-Patiala Road in Mohali and a hotel project in Mohali.

The empowered committee of the government had earlier approved nine mega projects in November last year with proposed investment of Rs 1,400 crore. Meanwhile, the much-hyped NRI Sammelan has failed to translate into investment proposals for the state.

While a few have made queries, the Industry Department is yet to receive any proposal for setting up of manufacturing unit, hotel or multiplex from the Punjabi diaspora.

Many NRIs have asked the government to provide them land at prime locations in the state. “We are willing to assist the NRIs with whatever land remains with us at industrial focal points such as Bathinda, Tanda, Raikot and Pathankot. But they are interested in focal points near Chandigarh, such as Mohali, Rajpura and Dera Bassi, which have all been sold out. We can play a facilitator’s role and help them with acquisition of difficult pockets to maintain the congruity of the project, but the Punjab government hardly has any of its land to offer to them,” sources in the Industry Department said, adding that only a handful NRIs allotted land at industrial focal points in the past have set up industry there.

Here with mega bucks, it is realty and not industry that is interesting NRIs. “Land is always a safer bet to invest and manage for those settled overseas.