I couldn't locate the link to the TOI article, but here are some interesting numbers I got from it.
1. Area - 32,000 acres
2. Cost - Rs25,000crores
3. Population - 1000,000
4. Investment - US$50bn
Incidentally, the article also informs us that Jurong Town Planners, the same people that designed Singapore, will be "crafting the master plan" (for the NMSEZ).
Another data point from the article - Shenzhen China is the poster boy of SEZ. It has attracted US$27.53bn worth of FDI as against India's total FDI of US$34bn over the comparable period.
In case you're interested in SEZs in India, do visit the Indian SEZ website (which probably will have to be worked upon if we have any hope of inviting serious foreign participation).
Yes, you will groan about the fact that the Navi Mumbai SEZ is an old idea that's never really taken off. Check out this article, which was also gung-ho as far back as Aug-2003. But nothing's happened. Probably the development of the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link and the new international airport hold the key to the whole project taking off. As will the investment of giants like Reliance, which is backing this project. I'm still researching this topic and will get back as and when I can get more gyan.
Nevertheless, yet again I find myself hoping for this city. Even if hope is a four-letter word. There is hope. Probably ten years (five?) down the line, things could look different.
4 comments:
and yet deep inside I know, its not going to happen. am I too negative?
@ evenstar - probably you are. Don't be. Even if hope is a four-letter word.
You are right about many things here. And the feasibility of Navi Mumbai SEZ is just not dependent on pace of development. There is a serious lack of consensus among various parties involved. Indian govt. has not been able to create a comprehensive policy for rehabilitation and land acquisition and the overall revenue model is still weak. There are 2 things here.
1. I had just been to Shenzhen in China, there the govt calls total shot and people have to obey. The situation in India is much more complex but not impossible. There needs to be some real mutual acceptance. Reliance is trying to acquire prime farming land at a throwaway rate, forging documents! It can not work thatway
2. The business model of an SEZ relies on the facilities, and tax rebates which are non-compatible. The only way it can work is to achieve the economy of scale (shenzhen SEZ is a mammoth size, some 60000 hectares). Whereas this govt. is cutting down the size everyday
So yes no one knows how long this will take. Hopefully with the new govt. in place some constructive thinking will take place..
thanks
navi mumbai special economic zone website is www.nmsez.com
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