The Hindu Business Line : Legal twist to Cipla’s SEZ issue

Hard hit
Cancellation, after according permission, would hit the finances of the developer as preliminary work would have started.
Cipla has already invested about Rs 200 cr at the site.

P.T. Jyothi Datta
S. Shanker

Mumbai, March 28

The Special Economic Zone (SEZ) imbroglio in Goa has taken a legal turn. Meditab Specialities Pvt Ltd, developer of the SEZ in Goa where Cipla was to set up its plant, has filed a petition at the Goa Bench of the Bombay High Court challenging the Goa Government on its recommendation to scrap its SEZ.

Cipla’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Amar Lulla, confirmed the development, and told Business Line that the developer had filed a petition last week asking the Goa Government why it had recommended to the Centre that the SEZs be scrapped.

The SEZ where Cipla’s plant was to come up was notified. Cipla had about 60 acres of the total 600 acres under Meditab, he clarified.

Cipla’s Goa project had been announced by its Chairman and Managing Director, Dr Yusuf Hamied, at the company’s last annual general meeting. The company was to invest Rs 400 crore in a facility to make aerosols, capsules and tablets.

An official familiar with the development said Cipla has already invested about Rs 200 crore at the site. The company had, in the past too, approached the Goa Bench of the Bombay High Court seeking protection at the site where work was being halted by protesting locals, Mr Lulla affirmed.

Besides Cipla, real-estate developer K. Raheja, too, is facing public ire for developing an SEZ, despite having Government approvals. They also have reportedly resorted to legal recourse, questioning the Goa Government’s decision to scrap its SEZ.

Peninsula Land Ltd, developers of one of the three notified SEZs in Goa, are also “evaluating all options”, Mr Rajeev Piramal, its Executive Vice-Chairman told the paper. While the notified SEZ is for biotech purposes, the real-estate company has two other SEZs (biotech and gem/jewellery) that it has got approvals for, he added.

Totally, about 15 SEZs in Goa had received in-principle approvals. But local protests brought work to a halt at the SEZ sites, triggering hectic parleys between the Centre and the Goa Government.

Since SEZs come under both the Centre and State, the State before forwarding its proposal should have evaluated the impact it would have on local people, observes Mr Pankaj Renjhen, Managing Director, Jones Lang LaSalle Meghraj.

Cancellation, after according permission, would hit the finances of the developer as preliminary work would have started. Governments should objectively address the issue, while there is no denying the fact that agriculture is important, arid and wasteland are also available in abundance, he points out.

Related Stories:
SEZs: The avoidable Goa tangle
Cipla taking relook at Goa SEZ project

More Stories on : Infrastructure | Courts/Legal Issues | Other States | Cipla Ltd

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