Chhattisgarh to amend land allocation & transfer policy

Chhattisgarh Government is working on proposal to amend the policy designed for transferring land for the use of public and private enterprises in the state.

"The state government is trying to amend the policy as there are many complications in the transfer of government land for other use," N Baijendra Kumar, Principal Secretary with the department of commerce and industry, said at a conclave of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) held here Thursday.

Because of the complications, even government to government land transfer had become difficult.

"We have been demanding land for the Naya Raipur (the new capital city of Chhattisgarh) and Kamal Vihar (an upcoming model township) but we have failed to get it," Kumar, who is also Chairman of Naya Raipur Development Authority, said.

In the backdrop of controversies spilling out over land allocation especially to the industries, no officials want to take any risk on papers and allot land to the industry, he explained.

The relaxation in the norms and policy for land allocation and transfer of land would help in overcoming from such reservations, he added.

Earlier, President of Chhattisgarh Laghu and Sahayak Udyog Sangh Harish Kedia pointed out the problems that the MSMEs had been facing in the state.

"The allotment of land to the industry had been one of the issues," Kedia said, adding that the state government should look into the matter in the larger interest of the small and medium enterprises. Referring to the new industrial policy of Chhattisgarh, Kumar said it would be released in November. The new industrial policy would be for 2014 to 2019.

"The state government had invited suggestions from the MSME and would incorporate it in the new policy," he added.