Maharashtra SEZ units to get more tax sops

The Maharashtra government has decided to offer more tax sops to SEZs and co-developers of industrial areas in the State. The exemption on stamp duty and registration fee in such areas has been extended from 10 to 25 years.

On the total cost of land, stamp duty is 5 per cent and registration fee is one per cent.

On Tuesday, the State Cabinet decided to extend the tenure of exemptions by 15 years in an attempt to give more impetus to the industrial development in the State.

A press statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office said the Maharashtra government brought out an SEZ Policy in 2001 but only in 2007 it was decided to grant exemptions on stamp duty and registration fee for 10 years. The exemption will lapse this year and, therefore, the term of the exemptions has been extended.

It will benefit large multi-product SEZ projects, such as the Multi-Modal International Passenger and Hub Airport (MIHAN), Nagpur. The MIHAN project is being developed by Maharashtra Airport Development Company Ltd, which is a State government concern.

A senior official at MADC said the task of acquiring land for the SEZ and equipping that land with infrastructure facilities had taken over 10 years, which hampered the marketing activities of the SEZ. Now with an additional incentive of stamp duty and registration fee, MADC hopes that more companies will set up their units at MIHAN.

The developers in such areas can get extended benefits on their first transactions but if the land is resold then the benefits will stop, the official said.

PTI adds: Maharashtra is looking at revamping its funding model so that bankers funding such projects will be covered by government, a senior State official said.

“Maharashtra is considering indemnifying bankers who fund infrastructure projects. This will form part of the agreement that they sign with the developers,” State PWD Principal Secretary Ashish Kumar Singh told a panel discussion at the Ficci-organised national banking summit here.

Noting that a lot of infrastructure projects are funded by the NBFCs with a short-term view, Singh underlined the need for long-term funding. The official did not elaborate as the plan is yet to be approved by the State Cabinet.

The State is on capex spree with Mumbai alone having over Rs ₹1 trillion investments in metro lines (seven under way) and a new international airport worth ₹18,000 crore (being developed by the GVK Group that also runs the city airport along with Cidco).

That apart, the government is also working on the over ₹18,000-crore Mumbai-Trans-Harbour Link that will connect the eastern periphery of the city with JNPT and Panvel, and a ₹15,000-crore coastal road project on the western waterfront, among others. The State is also planning an elevated fast line on the local train line between CST and Panvel.

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