Real Estate, the growth engine of Gujarat

Gujarat has been in the forefront of economic growth in the country with its continued leadership in industrial development. With its reputation of being a highly investor-friendly state, the state has a proven track record of attracting large investments and as a result, becoming the most

favoured investment destination in India.

Gujarat is one of the leading industrialized states in the country. Led by entrepreneurial spirit and unfaltering support of the state government, Gujarat has emerged as a manufacturing powerhouse with world class production capabilities and facilities.

Gujarat notifies $21.7 billion Special Investment Region

The notification was issued to the Dholera SIR Regional Development Authority (DSRDA) recently. Following the notification, the process on the ground is expected to pick up speed.

This is the first concrete step in turning this SIR into a reality,

The authority will create the infrastructure in the region and make land allotments to units proposing to set up shop there. ‘The government has already notified 99,000 hectares of land in 22 villages in the region and an investment of Rs. 1 trillion is on the anvil. The investment may ultimately even exceed this figure,

SIR will be a global showcase for Gujarat with a port and an airport in the region coming up in Dholera town, about 30 km from Dhandhuka village of Ahmedabad district.

Industrial Infrastructure Facilities Plan

Continuing its land acquisition drive for development of industrial areas and estates, Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) has proposed to acquire 31,241 hectares of land during fiscal 2010- 11.

About 10,117 hectares land already identified by the corporation, 7,000 hectares are for Dahej estates and 1000 hectares for Khergam and Vagra Vilayat each. Apart from this, around Rs 508.27 crore would be spent in 2010-11 for creating various infrastructures in different industrial estates. The corporation has proposed expenditure of Rs 4, 08.66 crore for different estates, which also include Bhat, Charodi in Ahmedabad, Dahej, Dahej-2, Vilayat, Jaghadia in Bharuch, Savli in Vadodara, Dahej SEZ and Ankleshwar. Nearly Rs 235 crore would be pumped in for Dahej-2 industrial estate.

GIDC also plans to construct common facility center for an apparel park in Ahmedabad and Garment Park in Surat involving an investment of Rs 3.96 crore. The corporation estimates its expenditure at Rs 2,200 crore for 2010-11. It may be mentioned here that Gujarat government has earmarked Rs 178.44 in 2010-11 for Critical Infrastructure Projects scheme of GIDC, which is aimed at upgrading infrastructure facilities of existing industrial estates.

The allocation for the current fiscal is higher than the provision of Rs 152.16 crore made for the purpose in 2009-10. So far, the

government has approved projects to the tune of Rs 1098.08 crore from 159 industrial estates under the scheme, where the state will offer financial assistance of Rs 502.32 crore.

Urban Infrastructure

Urban infrastructure is a generic name of the sector, which includes various types of services like Sewerage network, Solid Waste disposal system, Energy efficiency and Townships provided in the Urban agglomerations. The services provided in the Urban agglomerations in general are;

• Township Development

• Sanitation and waste water management

• Solid waste management

• Energy Efficiency Projects

• Multilevel Parking/ parking related facilities

Moreover to this, development of residential townships is also an important aspect of development of urban infrastructure.

Institutional framework

• Urban planning including town planning

• Regulation for land use and construction of buildings

• Planning for economic and social development

• Roads and bridges

• Sewerage Network for domestic, industrial and commercial purposes

• Rehabilitation & resettlement of slum pockets

To provide all these services in ever expanding cities of Gujarat is an enormous task, which the local bodies are doing with fair amount of success. But as these bodies are engrossed in their day- to- day. activities, they find little time for planning and structuring the new projects to address the ever increasing needs of the citizens of the urban areas.

Petroleum, Chemicals & Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR)

The Centre has signed an agreement with the Government of Gujarat for setting up a Petroleum, Chemicals and Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR) at Dahej in the state.

The PCPIR policy is a window to ensure the adoption of a holistic approach to the d e v e l o p m e n t of global scale industrial clusters in the petroleum, chemical and petrochemical sectors in an integrated and environment friendly manner. The idea is to ensure the setting up of industrial estates in a planned manner to achieve synergies and for value added manufacturing, research and development.

The Gujarat Government proposes to set up a PCPIR at Dahej in South Gujarat spread over the blocks of Vagra and Bharuch in Bharuch district. It will cover an area of 453 sq km, with a processing area of 186 sq km, approximately 41.05 per cent of the total area. This is in conformity with the PCPIR policy that states that the minimum processing area for the PCPIR will be about 40 per cent of the total designated area. The balance will be used as non-processing area and will include residential, commercial and other social and institutional infrastructure.

An official press release said the Gujarat Government proposed to notify the Gujarat PCPIR (GPCPIR) under the Gujarat Town Planning and Urban Development (GTP&UD) Act 1976. The State Government proposes to make a Government Company as Area Development Authority, which would be nominated as the PCPIR Authority under clause 6(A) of the GTP&UD Act 1976.

The total investment expected in the Gujarat PCPIR is about Rs 50,000 crore. The proposal mentions committed investment of Rs 22,930 crore. The total employment generation from the GPCPIR is expected to be 8 lakh persons and the estimated direct employment in the PCPIR will be about 1.9 lakhs over a period of time.

The proposal envisages development of physical infrastructure such as roads, rail, air links, ports, water supply, power and soon at a cost of Rs. 7749.70 crore. The PCPIR policy prescribes that infrastructure will be created/upgraded through Public Private Partnerships to the extent possible and that the Central Government will provide the necessary Viability Gap Funding (VGF).

Wherever required, the necessary budgetary provisions for creation of these linkages will also be provided. Accordingly, the Gujarat Government has sought support from the Government of India involving a commitment upto Rs. 80.50 crore, on account of Viability Gap Funding for eight road and two rail projects through the PPP mode.

Processing activities

The processing area includes the two existing estates developed by Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC)

- the Dahej Industrial Estate and the Vilayat Industrial Estate. The major processing activities at present in the region are chemical and petrochemical-based. The leading among them are Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Limited (IPCL), Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Limited (GACL), BASF, Birla Copper, Gujarat Chemical Port Terminal Company Limited (GCPTCL), Petronet LNG and Welspun. The ONGC Petro Additions Limited (OPaL) a joint venture company promoted by ONGC and Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC), is the anchor tenant for the PCPIR.

The development of global scale industrial clusters in the petroleum, chemical and petrochemical sectors in an integrated and environment friendly manner. The idea is to ensure the setting up of industrial estates in a planned manner to achieve synergies and for value added manufacturing, research and development.

The Gujarat Government proposes to set up a PCPIR at Dahej in South Gujarat spread over the blocks of Vagra and Bharuch in Bharuch district. It will cover an area of 453 sq km, with a processing area of 186 sq kms, approximately 41.05 per cent of the total area. This is in conformity with the

PCPIR policy that states that the minimum processing area for the PCPIR will be about 40 per cent of the total designated area. The balance will be used as non-processing area and will include residential, commercial and other social and institutional infrastructure.

The total investment expected in the Gujarat PCPIR is about Rs 50,000 crore. The proposal mentions committed investment of Rs 22,930 crore. The total employment generation from the GPCPIR is expected to be 8 lakh persons and the estimated direct employment in the PCPIR will be about 1.9 lakhs over a period of time.

The proposal envisages development of physical infrastructure such as roads, rail, air links, ports, water supply, power and so on at a cost of Rs. 7749.70 crore. The processing area includes the two existing estates developed by Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC)

- the Dahej Industrial Estate and the Vilayat Industrial Estate. The major processing activities at present in the region are chemical and petrochemical-based.]

The leaders among them are Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Limited (IPCL), Gujarat Alkalies and Chemicals Limited (GACL), BASF, Birla Copper, Gujarat Chemical Port Terminal Company Limited (GCPTCL), Petronet LNG and Welspun. The ONGC Petro Additions Limited (OPaL), a

joint venture company promoted by ONGC and Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC), is the anchor tenant for the PCPIR. OPaL has planned to set up a grassroot integrated petrochemical complex (1.1 MMTPA dual feed cracker) at a cost of Rs.13,000 crore, which will process C2+streams (ethane, propane and butane) produced from ONGC’s extraction plant and Naphtha fro.

Business hub

Urban infrastructure is a generic name of the sector, which includes various types of services like Sewerage network, Solid Waste disposal system, Energy efficiency and Townships provided in the Urban agglomerations. The services provided in the Urban agglomerations in general are;

• Township Development

• Sanitation and waste water management

• Solid waste management

• Energy Efficiency Projects

• Multilevel Parking/ parking related facilities

Moreover to this, development of residential townships is also an important aspect of development of urban infrastructure.

Petrochemical complex

OPaL has planned to set up a grassroot integrated petrochemical complex (1.1 MMTPA dual feed cracker) at a cost of Rs.13,000 crore, which will process C2+ streams (ethane, propane and butane) produced from ONGC’s extraction plant and Naphtha from ONGC’s plants at Hazira and Uran.

The State Government has already conducted a preliminary Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) while submitting its proposal. A detailed EIA study will be conducted subsequently and will require a time frame of 13-14 months beginning with the approval of the Terms of Reference for

the study by the Ministry of Environment & Forests (MOEF).

All existing labour laws of the country would be applicable in the PCPIR and SEZs, in the region, if any, would be governed by special laws, as approved by Government of India.