??|?? August 23, 2012 ?? 04:09pm ??|
Frequent power outages, lack of basic amenities and entry of land sharks keep businesses away
Spurred by the success of Gurgaon as a Millennium City, with its multi-storey offices sporting swanky glass facades, and the manufacturing boom in India, the Haryana government conceived in 1994 an ambitious 4,000-acre Industrial Model Township (IMT) in Manesar to bring in more entrepreneurs to the city.
But instead of shaping up as a township, which Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) promised will ?inspire entrepreneurship and success?, Haryana?s Manesar dream degenerated into a filthy neighbourhood with frequent power cuts and poor civic amenities. A decade after it was conceived, the ?dream township? has been reduced to an infrastructure mess.
HSIIDC records show at least 2,100 plots have been allotted to various industries here till date. But for a few heavyweights like automobile majors Maruti and Honda, most of these plots have ben taken by small and medium-scale units dealing in auto parts, garments and IT services.
A businessman who Newsline spoke to said only 40 per cent of the small and medium units were functional now.
Another businessman, Satish Chand, who heads one of the oldest industrial associations here, puts the figure at 25 per cent.
HSIIDC?s own figures hover around 75 per cent, but these, as most businessmen say, include buildings that are erected but lying idle.
POWER CRUNCH
Lalit Jalaan bought a two-acre plot for Rs 8 crore in 2009 to set up what he claimed was the country?s only diamond saw-blade plant, meant for cutting stones. ?It was basically because of the fancy infrastructure promises that we decided to invest so much money in the land,? he said. His plant today runs to about only a third of its capacity because of power shortage and rising cost of diesel, he said.
Eight other industry owners who Newsline met said they suffered power cuts of up to eight hours a day in recent months.
HSIIDC?s Assistant General Manager Vikas Gupta said: ?We have provided power stations. However, supply of electricity is the responsibility of the Power department.?
Businessmen say frequent power cuts push up operating costs and add to wastage of man hours. Jalaan said his diamond saw-blade plant that has an annual turnover of Rs 12 crore runs up a bill of Rs 28 lakh just for operating its diesel generators.
The industry association is now preparing for a legal battle with the state, for having slapped a new fixed cost on them without any improvement in services.
LAND PRICES go sky-high
Filmmaker Ameena Sherwani recalls how she was ?one of the very first entrepreneurs? to come to Manesar in 2001. ?Most others were property dealers with all sorts of start-up proposals,? she says.
?A decade later, when I complained about lax facilities, this is what an HSIIDC official had to tell me:?Madam, why do you care about your business? Now that value of your property is over Rs 3 crore, just sell it?,? she says.
IMT Manesar has turned a hotbed for land speculators and property dealers over the years. Owing to its prime location on NH-8 and a Supreme Court ban on further land acquisition, the monied managed to monopolise real estate here and squelched the chances of small-time entrepreneur, say businessmen.
M C Bhargav, president of the Manesar Industrial Welfare Association, said: ?This nexus between land dealers and property owners resulted in small entrepreneurs being pushed out of Manesar.?
The influx of property dealers also had land prices soaring. The land acquired for about Rs 4 lakh an acre a decade ago is today being sold at Rs 4 crore or more. Gurgaon-based property consultant Rajeev Sethi said: ?This rise in price is abnormal as there is no infrastructure in IMT and more than half the factories are shut.?
LABOUR BLUES
Manesar boasts of a labour population of close to 40,000 and little infrastructure to provide for these workers. The workers shell out an average of Rs 3,500 to Rs 5,000 per month for a shared room, which has few amenities.
However, government officials say they have provided dwelling units for workers. ?There are 36 dormitory units and 192 single-dwelling units, housing roughly 700 people,? says Gupta. Evidently, the fact that this accounts only for a miniscule fraction of the total labour population of 40,000 workers is lost on the officials.
Lack of proper sewage system adds to the woes of those living here, especially when it rains.
In Aliar village, rainwater inundates the wide roads of Sector 8 making traffic-movement sluggish in the area. Mahesh Yadav, an IT engineer based in Manesar, said: ?Even a moderate spell of rain, brings the water up to your knees.?
?Providing power is not our responsibility?
In an email interview, Vikas Gupta, Assistant General manager, HSIIDC, responded to queries from Newsline
When was IMT Manesar, planned, conceived, built and allotted?
Land acquisition proceedings for development of IMT Manesar were initiated in 1994-1995. Initial allotments of industrial plots to Maruti Vendors were made in 1997, and, other allotments commenced in 1999. Over the years, HSIIDC has allotted more than 2,100 plots for setting up of industrial ventures by entrepreneurs.
How big are most firms in Manesar? Are the majority of businesses small to medium scale or is the economy dominated by the likes of Maruti and Honda?
Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. and Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd. are the two mother plants located in IMT Manesar. Majority of the other units are small/medium scale ones, which include ancillaries of Maruti Suzuki, Honda and Hero MotoCorp.
What is the current economic condition of Manesar? Are most of factories functional or non-functional?
Most of the industrial units at IMT Manesar are functional. Of the total number of plots here, industrial projects have been taken off in more than 70 per cent of the plots. A number of projects are under implementation.
Is there a yearly audit that allows HSIIDC to keep a tab on economic activities in Manesar?
HSIIDC does keep a tab on the activities at the various units. Audit survey is carried out periodically. Besides, site visits are also carried out at regular intervals.
How many hours of electricity does the Corporation feel it provides factories or other industrial units in Manesar?
HSIIDC is entrusted with the task of providing industrial infrastructure, including electrical infrastructure, here. Power stations have already been set up by HSIIDC. However, supply of electricity is the responsibility of the Power department.
How does HSIIDC propose to solve the sewage and drainage problem in villages and their environs?
Development works in villages are primarily looked after by Development & Panchayat Department and the DRDA Department through BDPOs concerned. Some works are also carried out by the Agriculture Marketing Board.
HSIIDC has also been earmarking 1 per cent of the total cost of the project for development works of public benefit in the villages falling within the acquired land for its projects. The works undertaken by HSIIDC include creating/upgrading road network, water supply, street lighting, school infrastructure and medical centres/health facilities. The corporation has also doubled the funding under the Village Development Scheme from 1 per cent to 2 per cent of the total cost of development of the a particular project.
Why have the land prices spiked up so much?
Once a major chunk of an Industrial Estate is sold (more than 95 per cent in case of IMT Manesar), the majority of transactions of sale/purchase by third-parties is based on the collector rate, fixed by the District Administration. Allotment rate at that stage, is fixed keeping in view the collector rate of that area, which in the case of Manesar is Rs 14,000 per sq yard (Rs 6.77 crore per acre).
Pricing of plots in any industrial estate is a function of the cost of acquisition of raw land, administrative costs, survey and demarcation, payment of government fees, planning, development and provision of basic amenities. The overall costs so incurred is then loaded on to the net saleable area, which has also been done in case with IMT Manesar. Enhanced compensation, ordered by the courts, is also included.
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Source:?The Indian Express??By:?Akshat Khandelwal???Publish:?21-August-2012
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