SEZ promoters in Goa want over Rs.1,500 crore compensation

PANAJI - Special Economic Zone (SEZ) promoters in Goa have sought a compensation in exccess of Rs.1,500 crore from the state government which wants back the land issued to the promoters, an official said Monday.

The Rs.1,500 compensation is 30 times the amount (Rs.60 crore) paid by the seven promoters to the Goa Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) collectively for acquiring 32 lakh sq metres of land, where the seven SEZ were proposed to be set up, GIDC managing director Ajit Naik said at a press conference here.

“All the seven promoters have approached the court where they have demanded more than Rs.1,500 crore in compensation, damages and losses because they were not able to set up the SEZs,” he said.

The GIDC, which was the nodal agency for allotment of land to the SEZ promoters in 2007, had to later seek the land back from them, after public outrage against SEZ policy forced the state government to scrap all the seven SEZ projects, three of which were already notified.

The seven SEZ promoters - Meditabh Specialities Pvt Ltd, Cipla group, Peninsular Pharma Research Ltd, Paradigm Logistic and Distributors, Planetview Mercantile Pvt Ltd, Inox Mercentile Pvt Ltd and Maxgrow, have now approached the Panaji bench of the Bombay High Court challenging the GIDC decision and seeking compensation.

“The compensation and damages they have asked are completely unreasonable. Just because they have asked for such money does not mean we will give it to them,” Naik said.

Chief Minister Digambar Kamat last week said that he had asked central Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma to denotify three SEZ in the state.