Though metal, chemical, rubber, textiles and electrical industries still continue to attract investment, decline in value realisation in the textile sector due to stiff competition in the market, withdrawal of sales tax concessions and power subsidies to power intensive mental industries and local protest against polluting chemical industries have shifted the investor focus from these areas.

More importantly, the emerging working environment in tourism and IT does not pose any problem of labour unrest. Out of a total of 153 project proposals worth some Rs 1911 crore that the Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC) veted for funding during 1997-2000, 25 per cent were of tourism sector.

While food processing sector came next to tourism during the period with 17 per cent, IT is likely to see higher growth in the coming years. As the KSIDC figures indicate, after tourism, IT claimed about 17 per cent of the project proposals during the period from 1998-99 to 1999-2000. As regards tourism, we are on stronger wicket. During the last few years, the sector has registered a visible growth.

There are now lot of resorts, backwaters and more rooms as never before, pointed out industries principal secretary K Mohandas. He also claimed that the excellent working condition prevailing in Kerala, on the other hand, has started attracting highly skilled IT professionals to the State.

The cash-rich non-resident-Keralites (NRKs), on the other hand, have set a hospital boom lately. Super specialty hospitals costing on an average Rs 25-30 crore have mushroomed in many parts of the State, as a result, points out KSIDC executive director AJ Pai. Investment in health care now is around 10 per cent of the total. Sources in Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (Kinfra) noted that a larger share of proposals it received belonged to food processing sector.

Taking into account the growing demand for funding from the four sectors, KSIDC has formed sectoral committees. However, in tourism, there is an over crowding situation with too many players putting up investments in a particular place.

Also, investments do not strictly match demand, Pai said citing the example of a Kochi hotel making an investment of Rs 64 crore for 64 room facility.