By Anil Sharma, IANS,
Jaipur : Rajasthan’s industrial development and industrial agency plans to develop country-specific zones of the kind that exists for the Japanese in Alwar district’s Neemrana town.
“Three-four countries, including Italy and Taiwan, have shown interest in having zones similar to the one in Neemrana,” Rajasthan State Industrial Development and Investment Corporation Limited (RIICO) managing director Rajendra Bhanawat told IANS in an interview.
Bhanawat, a bureaucrat with experience of handling over 30 departments and other assignments in the state, took over RIICO Nov 16, 2009, and wants to make Rajasthan one of the fastest growing industrial states.
“We are likely to meet a delegation from Italy in Delhi soon and will make a presentation,” Bhanawat said.
Under Bhanawat’s stewardship, RIICO recently won the India Pride Awards For Excellence, being recognised for its efforts in developing industrial infrastructure.
The Japanese zone in Neemrana, on Delhi-Jaipur National Highway, is spread over 1,200 acres and units have so far been set up in around 70 percent of the area. The rest is expected to be filled up shortly.
Besides country-specific zones, Bhanawat said RIICO also planned to develop industrial clusters. “The most important is the ceramic cluster proposed in Gilot near Neemrana,” he said. “Around 750 acres will be meant solely for ceramic units.”
“We are also developing an industrial area dedicated to the powerloom sector at Naya Gaon near Pali,” he said.
In a 284-acre area being developed there for Rs.39.58 crore, 448 plots over 167 acres will be dedicated to powerlooms.
RIICO has identified 250 acres in Tapukra in Alwar district, near the Jaipur-Delhi national Highway, for an integrated apparel city.
“We also plan to develop an international exhibition complex-cum-convention centre in Sitapura near Jaipur in public-private partnership mode,” he said. “Selection of the private party is in the final stages.”
There have been no land acquisition problems. “We have a committee that talks to land owners to arrive at a compensation rate that is agreeable and so far we have not faced problems,” Bhanawat said.
RIICO posted an all time high profit of Rs.291.02 crore in 2010-11, against Rs.153.28 crore the previous year.
He said, during the period, RIICO sanctioned loans of Rs.212.44 crore, against Rs.98.23 crore in 2009-10, an increase of 116.29 percent.
Of the loans sanctioned, the automobile sector was the highest beneficiary at Rs.38 crore, followed by textiles at Rs.35.85 crore.
RIICO also disbursed Rs.132.15 crore in loans, a jump of 127.61 percent against the previous year, and recovered Rs.122.68 crore — Rs.89.19 crore as principal and Rs.33.49 crores as interest.
He said 1,449 new units commenced production that during the year and, as on March 31, 2011, the number of units in RIICO’s industrial areas stood at 28,579.
He also said Rs.180.25 crore was sanctioned for development of new industrial areas and Rs.561.30 crore for maintenance and upgradation of existing areas.
“We could achieve this growth mainly through simplification measures,” he said. “We simplified rules of land allotment. Hotels, weigh-bridges, petrol pumps can now be constructed on industrial plots without extra charges. This has been accepted well.”
(Anil Sharma can be contacted at [email protected])