Bengal govt gives nod for three SEZs

KOLKATA: While the finance and commerce ministries remain at loggerheads over the present Special Economic Zone (SEZ) policy, West Bengal government has taken the decision to tread a cautious path on SEZ approval. Even though the state government is flooded with more than 15 SEZ applications, it has given in-principle approval to only three of them - Kolkata Leather Complex, Kulpi SEZ and the Salim group-promoted Haldia SEZ.

The twin multi-product SEZ proposal of Videocon group is under active consideration of the government and may get a green signal once land is identified for the projects. At present, only three SEZs are operational in the state, namely, Manikanchan (gem and jewellery park), IT SEZ of Wipro and Falta SEZ.

The government has also put a self-imposed cap on the number of multi-product SEZ approvals. It has taken the decision that only five multi-product SEZs can come up in the state.

Talking to ET, D Som, managing director of West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) said: “We are in favour of single-product SEZs where the land requirement is much less. The minimum land requirement for a multi-product SEZ is 1,000 acres. On one hand, availability of such a huge tract of land is a real problem in our state, on the other hand, it is a tough task to ensure proper usage of the land by SEZ developer.”

One important point that has been raised by the finance ministry in its recent missive to commerce ministry is the selection criterion of SEZ developers. Currently there is no clear guideline for the selection procedure. On selection of SEZ developers, West Bengal government has worked out a formula of its own. Typically, the government is looking at SEZ developers who have an established track record in manufacturing sector.