Srinagar, Dec 13: Federation Chamber of Industries Kashmir (FCIK), the apex body of industrial associations of Kashmir region, has expressed it deep resentment for the new industrial land allotment policy in J&K.
In a statement issued to the Ziraat Times today, the Executive Council of the FCIK has strongly condemned the land allotment policy and the multiple amendment made in the past few months regarding the land allotment.
“The portal jkinvest.in was launched and the investment guidelines were issued on 22.4.2021 for inviting the applications. Since then the portal was opened and approximately 2500 applications were uploaded, out of which appraisal of nearly 90% applications are already conducted. In the meantime High Level Committee meetings were also held and designated committee has also allotted some huge chunk of land to few unit holders in Jammu and in Kashmir too. In addition, the government comes up with the change in committees, i.e. abolishing all Divisional level committees and constitution of a single high level committee for allotment upto 200 kanals of land”, the executive committee observed in the meeting.
“Guidelines in terms of score points for investment have been made applicable to all applications received on portal and already apprised by the designated District level committee headed by Joint Director Industries. We fail to understand as to why the yardstick has been changed, when it comes to the local entrepreneurs?”, the FCIK statement reads.
“Government must be aware that after guidelines were leaked by some WhatsApp group, approximately 800 applications have been uploaded on portal within a short period of only 10 days, which becomes very suspicious”, the statement reads, adding “the general applicants were kept in dark and the applicants who have applied post issuance of guidelines by way of points were already in know of these guidelines. Approximately 2500 applications were received in seven months all over Kashmir Zone and 800 applications were received within only 10 days”, FCIK further said.
“It is worth mentioning here that the guidelines for allocation of points in investment are different in Kashmir and with special considerations for the Jammu Division. Whereas Jammu investment points include working capital also, giving more points in comparison to Kashmir Division”, Executive Committee members said, observing that working capital consideration as part of investment proposition needs rethinking “as working capital has never been a part of investment globally”.
FCIK statement further said that “entrepreneurs who have applied for land without any defined parameters are unnecessarily being put to valuation method of newly introduced investment points. Whereas major chunk of land has been allotted to few blue eyed entrepreneurs in J&K on the same previous system of first come first service basis alongwith appraisal basis.”
“Surprisingly, parameters now devised for rest of the applicants, which means the large industrial units are getting preference and small prospective unit holders are not given any weightage in land allotment as they could setup more numbers of industrial units by providing them small plot size of land”, the statement further reads.
“The department has called for second and third preferences of industrial estates from the applicants now after seven months. By calling for preferences, the department is dropping out entrepreneurs who had applied there”, the members observed.
“It seems that the committee wants to pool estates and call for preference/choice of estates when it has not been envisaged by the industrial policy and was not made known to the applicants during submission of applications”, FCIK further observed, adding “how the parameters have been devised now, given that 90% appraisal has been completed without the marking system in place”. It also raised questions on the role of the recommendations of the Appraisal Committee.
“Further, prospective unit holders recommended by the District Industries Centre to the SIDCO have paid 10% of land premium since 2016. These applicants are awaiting for land allotments and the guidelines to be adopted for such cases are pending”, FCIK Executive Committee informed.
FCIK has demanded that the government should make land allotment to all those bonafide prospective unit holders who have applied with their proper applications on the same parameters by way of which the Government has earlier allotted industrial land in J&K.
