Reborn In 17th century India with Black Technology

"Hahaha hahaha"

Prithviraj Godara, the Chief Minister of Pratihara Puri (Rajasthan), burst out into hysterical laughter as soon as he received the message from the central government about the Northern Industrial Development Bill 1660.

At first, when the parliamentary session was announced and all the ministers were invited, he was also one of them. However, since the bill was about setting up industrial zones in the northern part of the empire, he chose to skip the session. In his mind, he was adamant that the state would not get any benefits from this bill since more than half of his state was occupied by an arid region, mostly desert. With such terrain, he had no hope for any industrial development. More importantly, he had to oversee numerous infrastructure projects, water conservancy projects, and other development projects in the state, so with everything considered, he sent a few local MPs to represent Pratihara Puri and, for the most part, ignored it. But who would have thought that when the MPs came back, they would bring him such good news?

He woke up smiling today.

Industrial development was something Prithviraj Godara was very envious about, the development in the southern part of the empire had been something he could only envy and could not get. Not to mention his state, which was mostly barren, even some of his neighbouring states, which had some of the most fertile lands in the empire, could not attract enough investment from industrialists in the south. Explore more stories at My Virtual Library Empire

Now, who would have thought his neighbours, whom he envied the most due to their fertile land and strong population, did not get the fund allocation from the central government, but he, the Chief Minister of Pratihara Puri, did? Not to mention, he got the highest funding compared to any of his neighbouring states.

"Good, good, good."

Prithviraj Godara excitedly yelled "good" repeatedly. He hadn't been this happy for a long time. The last time he was so happy was when he butchered the whole family of his landlord over a decade ago in order to get his revenge for defiling and killing his niece.

He wasn't even this happy when he became the Chief Minister because he knew that the moment he helped the Bharatiya Empire by eliminating the influence of the Rajput families on the society and advancing development in the major cities, he had solidified his rule.

Prithviraj looked at a middle-aged woman with uncontrollable excitement on his face. "Chaitra, where did the Prime Minister decide to establish the industrial zones?"

Chaitra Mahar, a professional woman wearing traditional Rajasthani clothes, looked at the document in her hands with a slight smile. "The first one is the Aravalli Range. An industrial zone spanning over 500 square kilometres is set to be established by the central government. Additionally, due to the support provided by the government, a few local landlords and the rich people in the state have already submitted applications to establish several metal smelting and processing factories in the industrial zone. Kombay Minerals, Patnaik and Bro's, Benzinjo Mining, and Shrestha Minerals have all informed us that hundreds of thousands of tonnes of copper, zinc, and lead deposits have been found in this area. They are willing to invest over 20 million Varaha in order to get the mining rights for these resources."

"Several private local construction companies have offered to provide their services at a discounted price if the managing committee of the Aravalli Range industrial zone gives first recommendation to their construction firms for the companies settling in the industrial zone."

Prithviraj Godara nodded happily, but he was uncertain about something. "That's all right, but where are the water resources coming from?" When he realized that four of the twenty industrial zones would be established in his state, he immediately studied the reasoning behind this decision. He then discovered the use of the steam engine, so he knew that just because the River industrial zones didn't have to be located on the banks of rivers didn't mean they required no water resources.

Chaitra squinted her eyes and looked at the map. "It is mentioned that, for now, the water will be extracted from the Seli River, Luni River, Sukhri River, and Maithdi River, along with some tributaries and lakes." She carefully circled a few blue water bodies intersecting the green patch of land on the eastern edge of the state.

"Hmmm!" Prithviraj, looking at the map, stroked his chin in contemplation. "Rivers and tributaries are all right, but extracting water from the lake is a bit too risky. Can I reject this specific plan?" he asked as he looked at the green patch of land on the eastern part of Pratihara Puri on the map.

'Who would've thought this green patch of land contains such a huge amount of resources?'

Chaitra nodded her head. "We can, sir, but I would suggest you reconsider because in the report, it is mentioned that water from bodies such as tributaries and lakes is extracted only for sustenance purposes and not for industrial use. And even if it is extracted, it is only near places where there are no settlements."

"And most importantly," she looked at the kind-looking middle-aged man with some expectation, "construction of water reservoirs, dams, and small canals are all included within the central government's inland industrial zone development initiative."

"Huh? Is that so? Hmmm." He paused for a while, contemplated the advantages and disadvantages in his mind, and finally came to a conclusion. "In that case, let's accept the proposal."

Chaitra nodded, unable to hide her happiness. Noticing this, Prithviraj was confused, but suddenly he realized something. "You're born in Udaipur, aren't you?"

Chaitra was stunned, but looking at the knowing expression on the Chief Minister's face, she couldn't help but smile wryly. "I can't hide anything from you, sir. Yes, I was born in Udaipur, and my family is still there."

"Haha, no wonder you're so happy. If the industrial zone is built there, the economy of Udaipur will benefit greatly."

Chaitra became embarrassed.

"Alright, let's put this aside. About the funds, how much did the central government allocate?"

"oh... Right, The Ministry of Finance has allocated 150,000,000 Varaha, which will be sent to the state government in five batches."

"However, sir, Prime Minister Vinod put forward a mandatory condition to receive the funds."

"Oh? What is it?"

"The spending of the funds should be monitored by an agent from the Election, Nobility, and Examination Commission (ENEC) regularly, as well as by a civilian body composed of civilians from other states and multiple representatives of business owners who will be settling in the industrial zone."

"Tch, the Prime Minister is really careful, isn't he?" Prithviraj chuckled. Then his face turned serious. "But it's good this way. At least everyone will be on the same starting line, and no one will play superior caste bullshit with me. In that way, I might not be forced to revert to my old ways."

Looking at the eyes that no longer appeared amiable, Chaitra was startled. She felt like she was standing in front of a completely different person.

Prithviraj suddenly snapped out of it, and his expression returned to normal. 'I've overdone it, damn it,' he cursed himself. Looking at Chaitra, who appeared wary, he immediately smiled, trying to ease the tension.

"Alright, this condition—I accept it. It's good for taxpayers' money not to be embezzled."

"Tell me about the other three industrial zones. Where will they be located?"

Chaitra immediately flipped the document and replied, "One is in the Khetri region, where industries mainly dependent on copper, like antique or kitchen appliances, will be provided full support in the form of a three-year tax exemption, a two-year 50% tax reduction, and a no-interest loan of up to 5 million Varaha. Additionally, a funding of over 80 million Varaha has been approved for the setting up of the industrial zone and the construction of supporting infrastructure."

"The other is the Zawar region, where industries focusing on producing products requiring zinc, lead, or silver will be concentrated. A funding of over 65 million Varaha has been approved."

"Finally, the region of Makarana is selected in order to develop its marble raw materials and turn it into a large industry capable of applying IP rights as a GI (Geographical Indicator), where marble from this region will be sold under the name of the area the marbles are produced."

"In our case, just like Kanchipuram silks, Kashmir apples, and Assam tea leaves, Makarana marble might also become famous all over the empire."

Chaitra, reading this part, became so excited. "Sir, this might actually be the biggest gain we have gotten among all the industrial zones that have been approved!"

Prithviraj's eyes brightened. "Is the funding provided greater than the other industrial zones?"

Chaitra shook her head. "No, Sir, in fact, it is only 45 million Varaha."

"Eh? Then wh-..." Chaitra didn't let Prithviraj finish his sentence before she replied, "Sir, the rest of the industrial zones might produce a lot of benefits in the short term, but in the long term, I'm not too sure they'll be competitive against neighbouring states, which not only have abundant resources but also abundant water sources and better environmental conditions."

"For now, in order to quickly produce output, the central government has chosen areas with a lot of resources despite the inconvenience. But once this difficult phase is passed, I believe company owners will start to consider the convenience of running the company along with raw materials. If my speculation is correct, it should be a place that is not too far from raw materials, not too far from water resources, not too far from human resources, and environmentally not too uncomfortable."

"Putting all these together, our state does not have too many such locations, but Makarana is in a unique position where its marble is something only this specific location can produce. So no matter how much private enterprises and business owners struggle with the environmental constraints, they will have to adapt to the local conditions."

"In the end, the Makarana industrial zone can net stable profits for the Rajasthan government for a very long time."

Prithviraj Godara's eyes lit up in realization, and he smiled happily. "Prepare the carriage; let's go to Makarana. I have to see this marble for myself." He immediately went to get changed into more appropriate clothes.

Suddenly, as if remembering something, he ordered, "Call for a cabinet meeting next week. The central government has allocated over 340,000,000 Varaha for the development of four industrial zones. This is not a small sum. I want to form a special department, like the infrastructure development department the central government established to manage the construction of the railway track project and the Great Canal project. Nothing can go wrong in implementation."

'If anyone dares to mess around, I wouldn't mind creating a few skeletons in his backyard and making him disappear.'

Chaitra, hearing the words of the Chief Minister, nodded and wrote down the orders. Fortunately, she didn't see Prithviraj's eyes; otherwise, she would have been horrified, because those eyes looked more ruthless and bloodthirsty than before.

P.S. Sry I had to prepare the project Report for submission, I mostly free-loaded off my teammates for the project, so I at least should prepare the report.