K'taka asks Centre to convene meet on SEZ

Bangalore, Jul 31 (UNI) Karnataka Major and Medium Industries Minister Katta Subramanyam Naidu today urged the Union Commerce Minister Kamalnath to convene a meeting of Industry and Finance Ministers from the States to arrive at a consensus on Special Economic Zones.

In a letter to Mr Kamalnath, a copy of which was circulated to the Media representatives in the Assembly today, he said in the backdrop of huge demand for formation of SEZs in and around important metropolitan cities, there was a need to encourage formation of SEZs in most backward areas to avoid further choking of metros.

He said the centre should identify the most industrially backward areas using satellite imagery and evolve a uniform policy to approve SEZs only in these areas. A time bound policy completely funded by the centre should be immediately adopted to create world class infrastructural facilities in these areas, he suggested.

UNI