Having attracted a mere Rs 8404.5 crore in the third quarter of the year, Haryana lagged behind many other states. However, the one consolation for Haryana was that none of its its neighbours, including Punjab, Himachal Pradesh or Rajasthan, figured in the top 10 list of states with most investments.

Powered by its potential in steel and oil sectors, West Bengal topped the league of the Indian states, attracting investment plans worth Rs 1,27,302 crore in the third quarter of the year 2007-08.

Among the five states that attracted maximum planned investments included Orissa (Rs 53,997 crore), Maharashtra ( Rs 47,393 crore), Tamil Nadu ( Rs 25,195 crore) and Andhra Pradesh ( Rs 21,660 crore).

West Bengal managed to attract maximum investment announcements in Q3 2007-08. Out of the total planned investment of Rs 1, 27,302 crore, most of it would flow into power (Rs 20, 450 crore), steel (Rs 17, 133 crore) and oil and petroleum (Rs 4850 crore). The ASSOCHAM study revealed that Orissa attracted the second highest amount totaling Rs 53,997 crore. Metal and mines (Rs 20,000 crore), steel (Rs 13, 100 crore), power (Rs11, 797 crore) and cement (Rs 1, 500 crore) attracted maximum investment plans.

Maharashtra with a investor-friendly environment emerged as the third largest investment destination for the companies planning to invest Rs 47,393 crore, mainly in the promising sectors like oil and petroleum (Rs 29,083 crore), ports (Rs 10,750 crore) and real estate ( Rs 3,983 crore).