Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore   

`More SEZs will come up in the next four to five years'

Staff Reporter

Many Export-Oriented Units may get converted due to the benefits

Coimbatore: There will be more Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in the country in the next four to five years, said B. Vijayan, Development Commissioner, Madras Export Processing Zone, SEZ.

"Because of the benefits for SEZs, more Export-Oriented Units (EOU) may get converted into SEZs," he said at an interaction with industrialists organised by the CII here recently.

Streamlining issues

Units operating within the zones could import and export without paying customs duty. All other Indian laws were applicable to the zone except the Customs Law. So, an umbrella legislation on SEZs was being consolidated to streamline all the issues related to it, Mr. Vijayan said.

The legislation would bring in stability in policy and enable procedural ease. Also, once the legislation was passed, the fiscal incentives for the zones would not be altered, he added.

"It will attract more Foreign Direct Investment, generate employment and facilitate greater global exposure," he said. SEZ would also enable transfer of technology and since it promoted trading, India could soon become like China or Hong Kong.

Chinese example

The concept of SEZ was introduced in India in 2003, following the Chinese example. Being a closed economy, China did not want to open up the entire country to a free trade zone. So they opened a few coastal cities. But the concept proved to be a success and today there were a number of SEZs in China, he pointed out.

MEPZ, the third largest SEZ in the country, was located in Chennai and its products ranged from textiles to engineering, he said.

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