At a press conference at the Spice Culture Restaurant in South Plainfield on July 15, Gov. Phil Murphy announced he will travel to India in September. – DANIEL J. MUNOZ
Gov. Phil Murphy is departing tonight for a week-long trade mission to India in an effort to promote New Jersey businesses abroad – similar to the ones he led to Germany and Israel in October.
The trip will take the New Jersey delegation to some of India’s major cities including Agra, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Gandhinagar, Hyderabad and Mumbai and focus on the clean energy, film and media sectors.
“I want New Jersey to be a state where foreign direct investment will once again flow in record numbers,” Murphy said at a July news conference organized by the Asian Indian Chamber of Commerce at the Spice Culture Restaurant in South Plainfield. “This is an economic relationship that exceeds $8.3 billion annually. It is a relationship that continues to grow.”
“And, as we work to reclaim our leadership in the innovation economy, India will continue to be an essential partner. After all, India is the second-largest source of foreign direct investment in New Jersey,” the governor added.
Choose NJ, a private group which markets the state nationwide and abroad, will pick up the tab for the trip. But a security detail for the governor, First Lady and top lawmakers, the New Jersey State Police’s Executive Protection Unit, will be paid for with taxpayer money.
This year’s trip – which runs next week until Sept. 22 – also includes First Lady Tammy Murphy and Economic Development Authority Chief Executive Officer Tim Sullivan.
During the trip to Israel and Germany, the governor was successful in convincing several foreign businesses to invest in New Jersey and set up shop.
Chief among them was drugmaker Teva Pharmaceuticals, which won a $40 million tax break for its move to Morris County. Murphy has since taken a frostier stance with Teva in response to critics of the company, although he championed the deal initially.
The company has fallen under intense scrutiny for its alleged role in the opioid epidemic and recently agreed to an $85 million settlement with Oklahoma state authorities over its manufacturing of opioids.
