EGoM to meet in 1st week of March to review SEZ related issues

New Delhi, Feb 12 (UNI) The empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) will meet in the first week of March to take a final decision on the crucial issues of land acquisition and rehabilitation related to the controversial Special Economic Zones (SEZ) projects.

According to official sources, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath is eager to push through the SEZ policy despite protests from several quarters.

The last meeting of the eGOM headed by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, which met here on January 22, ended inconclusively without taking any fresh decision regarding SEZs.

The Ministry is apprehensive that any major last minute changes made in the policy will affect the business confidence of the investor community.

The Ministry officials are of the view that the cloud hanging over the project should be removed at the earliest as any "inordinate delay" may force the business community to look elsewhere for investing their money.

The source said, "we cannot have any SEZ-specific land acquisition policy as land acquisition is land acquisition." Any changes sought in the SEZ policy will require legislation and the ensuing delay may affect the investor sentiment, the source added.

Of the total of 237 SEZ applications, 63 have been affected. But the Ministry is worried that the question mark hovering over the remaining SEZ proposals may affect the process detrimentally.

The meeting on the politically sensitive issue assumes significance following violent protests from farmers in Singur and Nandigram in West Bengal.

The January 22 EGoM meeting decided to seek the feedback from states on the issue of land acquisition. As Mr Kamal Nath pointed out, the Centre does not have any say in the matter of land acquisition, which is a state subject.

The meeting, which remained inconclusive, discussed the Prime Minister's proposal for a special rehabilitation package for those displaced by SEZs. Three aspects of the controversial SEZ issue -- the land acquisition policy, rehabilitation issues and the potential for misuse of tax breaks offered to these units -- came up for discussion.

UNI