SEZ exports to double to Rs 135,000 cr by FY09

New Delhi, Jun 21: The government today said the export the country's exports from special economic zones (SEZs) are expected to double to Rs 1,35,000 crore by this fiscal-end.

"Exports from SEZs are expected to double to Rs 1,35,000 crore by the end of this financial year," Commerce Secretary G K Pillai said here. While addressing PHD Chamber, he said the exports from SEZs during 2007-08 were to the tune of Rs 66,638 crore, posting a 92 per cent growth over last fiscal. Out of these exports, 85 per cent were physical exports, 13 per cent deemed exports and two per cent DTA sales, he added. With a multiplier effect on indirect jobs and providing an all inclusive growth, the Secretary said direct job creation will increase to four lakhs from existing two lakhs.

''The 231 notified SEZs were creating equitable opportunity for economic development. Tremendous knowledge and skills were being generated within these SEZs and there was a huge cascading effect on employment generation in the surrounding rural areas due to outsourcing which promoted inclusive growth,'' Mr Pillai said.

India is competing with a lot of countries for attracting FDI and our SEZs were acting as a catalyst in this regard, he continued. Mr Pillai said land acquisition was now a non-issue and developers were buying land at prevailing market rates and also working on relief and rehabilitation issues, and added that the lacuna was in the Land Acquisition Act and not in the SEZ Act.

For the country as a whole, less than 10 per cent of the land acquired by the government was for SEZs.

UNI