Ludhiana: Punjab’s primary manufacturing hub is leveraging a high-profile political visit to lobby the central govt for sweeping infrastructure upgrades to protect its status as a global export competitor.Local business leaders presented a targeted wishlist to visiting BJP national president Nitin Nabin, saying that the landlocked industrial city requires urgent rail and logistics support to capitalise on emerging international trade opportunities.A central priority is the construction of a 100-acre, world-class exhibition and convention centre modelled after New Delhi’s Pragati Maidan. Chamber of Industrial and Commercial Undertakings (CICU) president, Upkar Singh Ahuja, said the facility would allow Ludhiana to host international trade fairs, eliminating the need for local entrepreneurs to travel elsewhere to secure foreign buyers.“A dedicated center would significantly boost trade, investment, and industrial visibility for Punjab,” Ahuja said.Logistical isolation remains a critical hurdle. Industry representatives are urging the central govt to expand high-speed rail corridors — including a proposed link to the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train network — extending freight lines to Amritsar.Business leaders argue that dedicated, high-speed cargo trains are vital to transport manufactured goods to coastal ports quickly and economically. The sector also called for the full operationalisation of the Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor, noting that local exporters have yet to experience the faster, lower-cost freight movements promised by the project.Beyond domestic infrastructure, the chamber urged the govt to repurpose its international diplomatic assets to assist regional economies. Industrialists requested that the economic and trade promotion wings of Indian embassies abroad act as proactive trade agents to identify new markets and secure business linkages for domestic manufacturers.Nabin’s tour follows a similar listening campaign by petroleum and natural gas minister Hardeep Singh Puri, signalling an intensified focus by the party in office on Punjab’s industrial heartland.
