Punjab SMEs get waiver on penal interest

In a rare gesture of amnesty towards small and medium outfits of the state, the Punjab Small Industries and Export Corporation (PSIEC) offered a waiver of interest and penal to the defaulter allottees of industrial plots located across the state.

Over 1,500 units, located at different focal points of the state, would benefit from the scheme that would cost PSIEC Rs 65 crore.

For the first time, the department of industries has floated an ‘amnesty scheme’ enabling defaulters to pay additional price of their plots arising from land compensation awarded by the respective judicial courts.

Manoranjan Kalia, Punjab’s minister of Industries & Commerce said: “The defaulter allottees would now be required to make payment of their dues of additional cost (principal) in two equated quarterly installments.” “These would include installments due September 30 and December 12 this year, along with simple interest rated to a maximum of 15 per cent per annum. The government has waived off the component of penal interest, which is otherwise recoverable from the defaulter allottees according to terms of allotment," he added.

With this scheme, the defaulters will be able to discharge their long-pending liability towards enhanced cost and obtain clearances that had been withheld because of their consistent default.

For long, industrial plot holders and Focal Point associations have been demanding different platforms for providing concessions to the defaulter allottees, thus enabling them to pay off their dues of enhanced land cost.

According to Sukhdev Raj, president of Jallandhar Industrial Focal Point Association, the scheme would help raise working capital from banks, as a no objection certificate (NOC) is required to seek a loan.

For cases where part payment had been received along with applicable interest, the amount of part payment shall be adjusted with effect from the date of its receipt.