Salarpuria Group shelves SEZ projects in Hyderabad, B’lore

BANGALORE: The Salarpuria Group has shelved plans of developing two special economic zones in Hyderabad and Bangalore, citing the proposed withdrawal of tax benefits in the draft Direct Tax Code. It now plans to convert its proposed Rs1,000-crore, 30-acre SEZ project in Hydearbad’s Hi-Tech City area into a commercial and residential project.

It is yet to decide on the new plan for its 25-acre Bangalore SEZ. “There is no benefit in doing an SEZ project right now, as there is no clarity on the policy,” said Bijay Agarwal, managing director of Salarpuria Group. According to the revised DTC draft, tax exemptions for SEZs have been provided only to existing units. At present, SEZs are completely export-oriented.

According to the national SEZ policy, the units get 100% income tax exemption on export income for the first five years and 50% for the next five years. A further exemption is provided on 50% of the ploughed back export profit for the next five years after the first 10 years.

“The revised Hyderabad project is at the drawing board stage and will be launched soon,” Agarwal said.

The company has also entered into a JV with TTK Prestige to develop a high-end residential-cum-commercial complex on Old Madras Road in Bangalore.

Earlier, the plan was to build a standalone commercial project on the TTK-owned factory land.