N Kiran Kumar Reddy has asked the concerned officials to accelerate the process of land acquisition for the building of National Investment Manufacturing Zones.
Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy has asked officials to expedite the land acquisition process in the districts of Chittoor and Medak, which will serve as the sites for the establishment of the proposed National Investment Manufacturing Zones (NIMZ).
The Chief Minister presented a detailed review of the status of NIMZ at a meeting held at the secretariat, on Friday. He said that a proposal to set up another NIMZ in the district of Prakasam might also be submitted to the government of India.
He said that the different models for land acquisition should be handed out to the families which are affected by the project, so that they can choose and adopt the one most suitable for them.
The Chief Minister also agreed to set up four Land Acquisition Units to accelerate the process of land acquisition, stating that a senior IAS officer should be appointed to oversee the project, and to ensure that all the operations are carried out sequentially and in phases.
He said that a developer of international repute should be appointed as a partner for the project.
With respect to the provision of energy resources for the NIMZ, the CM said that a dedicated feeder should be set up for ensuring continuous power supply to the NIMZ.
Similarly, water sources should be identified, and storage capacity should be assessed to allocate water for the NIMZ, he said.
The officials informed the Chief Minister that land acquisition in the districts of Medak and Chitoor will be completed soon, claiming that a substantial portion of the land will be in the state government's possession by the end of March 2014.
As soon as that happens, a detailed project will be ready for the final approval from the government of India.
Also, it was decided that a special purpose vehicle (SPV) would be created to take up the project, which would initially be owned by the government, and will be subsequently owned in a Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode.
The private developer will be appointed by inviting global tenders. Based on its previous expertise and experience in the Delhi Mumbai Industrial Corridor, ILFS has been selected to prepare the techno-economic feasibility report-cum-development plan for submission to the government of India.
A program will be devised in order to reach out to the affected villages and to explain the benefits of the proposed project to the residents of these villages.
The National Manufacturing Policy of the government of India envisages an increase of 12-14% in the growth of the manufacturing sector, as well as an enhancement in the sector's contribution to the GDP to about 25% by the year 2022.
The policy also envisages the creation of 100 million additional jobs, and the introduction of newer skill sets among the rural migrants and the urban poor.
The project aims at increasing the domestic value and technological depth in the manufacturing section. Other objectives include an enhanced Indian presence in the global manufacturing sector, and the sustainability of growth with regard to environmental conservation.
Waste lands, infertile and dry lands which are not suitable for cultivation, lands which have access to basic resources like water and which are not within ecologically sensitive areas, will be acquired for land acquisition.
The state government will be responsible for the process of site selection, for bearing the relief and rehabilitation costs, and for conducting environment impact assessments, amongst other major procedures.
The role of the central government is to bear the cost of master planning in NIMZ, creating external infrastructure through public-private partnerships and viability gap funding, funding for internal infrastructure, provide institutional infrastructure, and promote investments along with the state government.
Minister of Major Industries Dr. J Geeta Reddy, Textiles minister G Prasad Kumar, Chief Secretary Dr. P K Mohanty, Principal Secretary of Industries Pradeep Chandra, the CM's Secretary Dr. K S Jawahar Reddy and other officials attended the meeting. (INN)