SEZs galore, but no clarity on rehabilitation plan yet
State yet to receive a formal communication from the Centre on the recently unveiled relief & rehabilitation policy.
By Abhiram Ghadyalpatil, TNN |
MUMBAI : Even though Maharashtra has bagged as many as 142 proposals for setting up special economic zones (SEZs), the state government is yet to receive a formal communication from the Centre on the recently declared relief and rehabilitation policy for industrial projects.
Mantralaya sources said the government is still awaiting a formal draft of the policy, which it would have to follow for all such SEZ and industrial projects involving land acquisition. Officials said the delay in receiving the policy would not really hamper the relief and rehabilitation as the state already had its own policy.
“But early progress on the R&R policy for SEZ would certainly help the state clear doubts and fears associated with the very concept of SEZ,” said an official.
The Centre came out with a comprehensive relief and rehabilitation policy around two months ago after violent protests over industrial projects in West Bengal and other states.
The policy applies to all such industrial projects which require acquisition / purchase of land, both for the government-sponsored projects and private initiatives.
In Maharashtra, the policy applies to the Maha Mumbai multi-product SEZ proposed by Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries, and his associates. This project has witnessed stiff opposition from the locals. The developer of MMSEZ has, however, come out with its own compensation package, which it claims offers more goodies than the government policy provides for.
The state government is also waiting for a go-ahead from the Centre to its proposed SEZ Act, sources said.
Maharashtra has drafted its own SEZ Act independent of the central SEZ Act of 2005, to offer more concessions like further relaxation in labour laws, particularly in the form of the hire-and-fire policy, sources said. But the Centre has yet to approve of the state Act.
The state government cannot introduce the bill in the legislature unless the Centre approves the draft, sources said.
“We have been planning to introduce the bill in the past three legislature sessions. If the approval does not come through even after the winter session of the state legislature, we may get an ordinance promulgated so that the state has in place its own legal apparatus to attract more investment,” said a senior bureaucrat.
Of the 142 SEZ proposals in Maharashtra, 82 have been formally approved and 39 have received in-principle approval so far. The Centre has notified 21 SEZs in Maharashtra.
Mantralaya sources said the government is still awaiting a formal draft of the policy, which it would have to follow for all such SEZ and industrial projects involving land acquisition. Officials said the delay in receiving the policy would not really hamper the relief and rehabilitation as the state already had its own policy.
“But early progress on the R&R policy for SEZ would certainly help the state clear doubts and fears associated with the very concept of SEZ,” said an official.
The Centre came out with a comprehensive relief and rehabilitation policy around two months ago after violent protests over industrial projects in West Bengal and other states.
The policy applies to all such industrial projects which require acquisition / purchase of land, both for the government-sponsored projects and private initiatives.
In Maharashtra, the policy applies to the Maha Mumbai multi-product SEZ proposed by Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries, and his associates. This project has witnessed stiff opposition from the locals. The developer of MMSEZ has, however, come out with its own compensation package, which it claims offers more goodies than the government policy provides for.
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The state government is also waiting for a go-ahead from the Centre to its proposed SEZ Act, sources said.
Maharashtra has drafted its own SEZ Act independent of the central SEZ Act of 2005, to offer more concessions like further relaxation in labour laws, particularly in the form of the hire-and-fire policy, sources said. But the Centre has yet to approve of the state Act.
The state government cannot introduce the bill in the legislature unless the Centre approves the draft, sources said.
“We have been planning to introduce the bill in the past three legislature sessions. If the approval does not come through even after the winter session of the state legislature, we may get an ordinance promulgated so that the state has in place its own legal apparatus to attract more investment,” said a senior bureaucrat.
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Of the 142 SEZ proposals in Maharashtra, 82 have been formally approved and 39 have received in-principle approval so far. The Centre has notified 21 SEZs in Maharashtra.
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