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The Board of Approval (BoA) for Special Economic Zones (SEZ) on Friday deferred its decision on around 24 proposals relating to SEZs from States going for polls owing to the model code of conduct, including the one to set up a new 46.38 hectare IT/ITeS SEZ by Smart City (Kochi) Infrastructure in Ernakulam, Kerala.
Assembly elections have been announced in Kerala, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Assam and Puducherry.
The inter-ministerial BoA, headed by the Commerce Secretary Mr Rahul Khullar, also deferred those proposals to set up new SEZs not having the concerned State Government's recommendation, official sources told Business Line.
The proposals that did not have the respective State Government's recommendation included that of B Raheja Builders for a 14.5 hectare IT/ITeS SEZ in Navi Mumbai; Cybercity Builders and Developers for a 10.12 hectare IT/ITeS SEZ in Greater Hyderabad and Sterling Port Ltd in Dahej, Gujarat for a 144 hectare port-based SEZ. Sterling Port has possession of 115.95 hectares (of the total 144 hectares) to set up the SEZ.
The BoA gave its approval only to one proposal to set up a new SEZ, which is for Artha Infratech to set up a 10 hectare-IT/ITeS/electronic hardware and software SEZ in Greater Noida. Artha's SEZ had the State (Uttar Pradesh) Government's recommendation.
Meanwhile, the BoA gave more time for developers — barring whose SEZs are in poll bound States — to execute their projects.
The BoA allowed the request of Biomax Fuels, which is an SEZ unit in VSEZ, for import of used cooking oil, and to the application of Roxul-Rockwool Insulation, a unit in Dahej SEZ, for import of un-granulated slag. The BoA's nod was required as the request is concerning import of prohibited items. The BoA also gave its nod to the proposal of Keshwani Exim to set up unit in an SEZ for trading activity of salt, sugar, pulses, spices, cereals and honey. The permission to these proposals was given with a rider that these activities will have no interference with the domestic tariff area (or DTA, which is the area outside SEZs where all taxes and duties are applicable unlike the SEZs which are tax-free zones).
But the request of Southern Online Biotechnologies, a unit in APIIC SEZ, for import of mutton tallow and tallow oil was turned down as these items are considered sensitive.
The BoA also allowed the request of GMR Hyderabad Aviation SEZ Ltd for changing the sector of notified SEZ at Mamidipalli village in Hyderabad from ‘Aviation' to ‘Multi Product-Airport Based'.
It also permitted the de-notification of Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation's 103-hectare textile SEZ at Solapur in Maharashtra as well as the withdrawal of formal approval given to Mexus Corporation and Gujarat Hydrocarbons and Power SEZ to set up SEZs.
But the BoA deferred the proposal for divestment of equity of a developer and two co-developers in respect of Aachivs Softtech Pvt Ltd, an operational-sector specific IT/ITES SEZ at Noida.
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