10 new plastic parks to boost domestic production: Ministry

The country is set to have 10 new plastic parks with an investment of Rs 400 crore from the Centre to boost domestic production of plastic, a Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers official said on Thursday.

"Four plastic parks -- one each in Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Assam and Tamil Nadu -- are under implementation while six more will soon be coming up," said Arun Agarwal, Director in the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals.

The six parks to come up soon -- in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Uttarakhand and West Bengal -- are still under the process of approval.

Under the scheme, the Centre contributes 50 per cent of the project cost and the rest is borne by the respective states.

However, there is a ceiling on investment from the central government's side. It can invest a maximum of Rs 40 crore for development of each park, Agarwal said.

Speaking on the sidelines of an event organised by the Indian Chamber of Commerce, Agarwal said: "For these 10 plastic parks, the Centre's investment would be to the tune of Rs 400 crore."

He explained that usually states move proposals from their respective industrial development corporation for approval for setting up such parks.

At present, India's plastic consumption stands at 12 million tonnes -- about eight to nine million tonnes is produced domestically and about three to four million tonnes is imported.

The proposed plastic park in West Bengal will be at Barjora in Bankura district.

Agarwal said: "We have given in-principle approval to West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) in March and they are supposed to submit the detailed project report by this month (September)."

"The park will spread over 25 acres of land with an investment of Rs 25 crore. The Centre would provide Rs 12.5 crore," he said.

A WBIDC official, however, said the state would seek permission from the Centre to extend the deadline for submitting the detailed project report.

--IANS

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