Thaindian News

Chandigarh, March 15 (IANS) With nearly 70 percent of the total Japanese investment in India being in Haryana, the state has offered all possible help to the island country that has been devastated by last week’s earthquake and tsunami.

“Haryana has offered all possible assistance to Japan in this hour of crisis and the government as well as people of Haryana stand by the Japanese,” Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said here Tuesday.

Hooda said that on hearing about the massive damage in Japan, he had, on the first day of the tragedy, contacted the Japanese ambassador to India and assured him of all help.

“Seventy percent of the total investment made by Japan in India is in Haryana. If these companies have suffered economic loss because of the natural calamities, our government would try to assist them,” Hooda said.

Over the years, Haryana has emerged as a favoured destination of Japanese majors, given the proximity of the state’s national capital region (NCR) belt to New Delhi.

The runaway success of the Maruti-Suzuki brand, piloted by Japanese car manufacturer Suzuki, has led other Japanese companies to invest over 23 billion yen (Rs.4,282 crore) in the state over the years.

A ‘mini-Japan’ of sorts already exists on the state’s industrial front.

The big names that have invested in Haryana include Suzuki, Honda, Canon, Yakult, Denso, Mitsubishi, Toyo, Daikin, Yokohama, Showa, Nippon, Kansai Paints, Asahi, Stanley and many others.

Thousands of people are feared dead and many others missing after a magnitude 9 earthquake triggered a ferocious tsunami March 11.