Goa creating land banks to attract investment

With tourism and mining being the main industries in the beach state of Goa up till now, it is now going for a major drive to attract large investments from sectors like IT and manufacturing companies.

Though a focus on sustainable growth would remain the mainstay, the State Government is now earmarking land banks as part of its industrial estates for the purpose. Moreover, a new regional land use plan, which is expected to be announced soon, is expected to fast track the process.

Land acquisition

“The Goa Government has already acquired 31 lakh square metres of land, which will be offered to industry. We expect investments in the pharmaceutical industry, hospitality sector and IT to flow in. The new regional plan, which identifies the developmental zone, has already been announced in five out of the 11 ‘talukas'. A dozen hotels are now slated to come in,” said Mr Ralph De Sousa, Chairman, De Souza Group, and CII Chairman of Goa.

At present, there are 20 industrial estates in Goa, of which 12 are major. In all there are 637 plots available, from which 370 are new.

“Some units had closed down for various reasons like financial constraints, lack of new technology or loss of competency to imports. With the Goa Chamber of Commerce and the Small industries Corporation, we are now identifying these and offering them to entrepreneurs,” he said.

Currently, tourism and mining each have one-third share of the GDP in the State. This is followed by other major employers like ship repair/building, pharmaceuticals and IT. The Government is now providing land for entrepreneurs wishing to start educational centres. On the healthcare front, CII is working with the Government to see it reaches all people free of charge.

“We have done some introspection on the theme for this year. We call it SHAKTI - Sustainable growth though Healthcare, Agriculture, Knowledge, Tourism and Infrastructure development. This theme will take a few years to implement,” he said.

Challenges

Goa has also identified the challenges that may present a roadblock to its growth plans. These are the lack of transport infrastructure and the creation of logistics hubs to support the port, rail and road networks.

“The two logistics hubs in North and South Goa need to be put in place soon. We're also working with the Mormugao Port Trust to improve its berths. The new airport in Mopa, North Goa is also expected to be operational in the next five years as land has already been acquired. This will have a warehousing facility, plus the international connections will boost the tourism industry,” he said.

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