Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka government on Monday approved 18 projects with a total investment of over Rs 75,000 crore, including a proposal by tech giant Apple's contract manufacturer Foxconn for Rs 8,000 crore.

Among the 18 projects that were approved by the State High-Level Clearance Committee under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, 10 are new, five are expansion projects, and three are additional projects with all the investment proposals expected to provide employment opportunities for 77,606 people.

Investment projects worth Rs 75,393.57 crore are expected to further push industrial growth and generate direct and indirect employment opportunities in Karnataka, an official release said.

Foxconn Hon Hai Technology India Mega Development Private Limited (FHH) would invest Rs 8,000 crore with employment opportunities for 50,000 people, it said.

A delegation led by Foxconn CEO and Chairman Young Liu had visited the state and held a meeting with Chief Minister Bommai a fortnight ago in Bengaluru.

"We are happy that the state has received such a huge investment. The proposals for green hydrogen, ethanol production, wind energy power plant, electrical and electronic items assembling, lithium batteries and electric vehicles, and cement and steel companies in the state have been approved in the meeting. Karnataka's contribution to the manufacturing sector will be remarkable in the country," Bommai said.

Expressing happiness over the volume of investment proposals received, Large Industries Minister Murugesh R Nirani said it is a testimony to the industry-friendly policies and the conducive ecosystem provided by the state government.

Stating that Karnataka is at the forefront of the renewable energy, ethanol production, and manufacturing sector, he said: "To encourage green hydrogen production, ethanol production, aerospace, and renewable energy, ESDM (Electronics System Design and Manufacturing), we have approved proposals from Amplus Active Private Limited, Ayana Renewable Power Six Private Limited, Vishwaraj Sugar Industries Limited, TATA Advanced Systems Limited."

"Karnataka is the third largest sugarcane-growing state in the country and also is the highest producer of ethanol. We are glad that the green energy sector investment proposals have been approved in this meeting," he added.

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Bengaluru (PTI): Campaigning for 14 Lok Sabha seats in Karnataka going to polls in the first phase on April 26 will come to an end on Wednesday evening.

A total of 247 candidates -- 226 men and 21 women -- are in the fray for this round of voting in most of the southern and coastal districts.

It is a straight electoral contest between the ruling Congress and the BJP-Janata Dal (Secular) combine in the State.

While the Congress is contesting in all 14 seats, BJP has fielded nominees in 11, and its alliance partner JD(S) in three -- Hassan, Mandya and Kolar.

Besides the three, the segments where elections will be held on Friday are: Udupi-Chikmagalur, Dakshina Kannada, Chitradurga, Tumkur, Mysore, Chamarajanagar, Bangalore Rural, Bangalore North, Bangalore Central, Bangalore South and Chikkballapur.

The intense campaigning for the past about a month saw Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah leading from the front for the BJP, holding rallies and roadshows. BJP President J P Nadda, some Union Ministers and Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant too pitched in.

Veteran BJP leader and former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa and the party's state president B Y Vijayendra also campaigned extensively.

Congress president M Mallikarjun Kharge, senior leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar and Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy were among the prominent names who led the charge for the party.

And for the JD(S), it was the 90-year-old party patriarch and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and former Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, who led the campaign.

Chikkaballapur has a maximum number of 29 candidates, followed by 24 in Bangalore Central and Dakshina Kannada has the least number - nine.

Kumaraswamy from Mandya, his brother-in-law and noted cardiologist C N Manjunath from Bangalore Rural on a BJP ticket, erstwhile Mysuru royal family scion Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar from Mysore, also from the BJP, and state Congress President Shivakumar's brother and MP D K Suresh from Bangalore Rural, are among the prominent candidates in the fray in the first phase.

The state has a total of 28 Lok Sabha segments. The remaining 14 constituencies, mostly in the northern districts, will go to polls on May seven.