Govt clears 27 new SEZs

The Board of Approval (BoA) on Special Economic Zones (SEZs) approved 27 proposals, with 17 getting the formal clearance and 10 others receiving in-principle green signal. The formally approved 17 SEZs, included an SEZ by Bharat Forge near Pune which would spread across 1,271 hectares and see investments of over Rs50bn. Another significant SEZ that was formally approved was a 1,804 hectares SEZ by Jindal's JSW Bengal Steel in Midnapur in West Bengal. This SEZ would see an investment of Rs153.21bn. Other 10 SEZs also received in-principle approvals from the Board of Approval. These include a heavy engineering SEZ of 467 hectares to be built by L&T Ship Building in Tamil Nadu. The project would see an investment of Rs16.65bn. One of the largest projects among these plans would involve an investment of Rs113.4bn. The multi-product EMPI Vittal Centre has got in-principle nod and will come up on an area of 1,100 hectares in Gujarat. The SEZ is being promoted by former Central Vigilance Commissioner N Vittal.