Union Textiles Secretary Rachna Shah speaks throughout an interview with The Hindu at Udyog Bhawan in New Delhi on April 12, 2023.
| Photo Credit: SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR
Almost a month after the Centre introduced its determination to arrange seven mega textile parks below the PM Mega Integrated Textile Regions and Apparel (PM MITRA) scheme, Union Textiles Secretary Rachna Shah mentioned the institutional mechanism to start the works in two mega parks in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka will be prepared in three months. Ms. Shah mentioned the Centre has requested the States to expedite the method to type a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) and to choose a grasp developer to implement the scheme.
Talking to The Hindu, Ms. Shah mentioned the SPV, which can be shaped between the States and the Centre for every of the parks, will turn into the company that can oversee the implementation of the park. “We have signed MoUs (Memorandum of Understanding) with Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Other MoUs will be signed in the due course. The SPV, in turn, would be selecting a master developer. These are mega parks of at least 1,000 acres. Fifty per cent of the parks will be used for developing core infrastructure. There will be common facilities and special facilities such as testing, skills training and logistical arrangements. Commercial areas will be allowed in 10%. The master developer will conceptualise and prepare the plan for development of the park comprising these elements,” Ms. Shah mentioned.
The Textiles Secretary mentioned the parks have already elicited curiosity from traders. “It is in early stages. We will reach out to big and small investors in India and abroad. In Tamil Nadu, we have investors who have indicated interest for investment worth ₹1,100 crore. We are expecting that each park will be able to get investment of about ₹10,000 crore. In Karnataka, investment interest worth about ₹1,900 crore has been expressed. The State has entered into an MoU with some of the investors. We expect that each park will generate one lakh jobs,” she added.
The incentive for the manufacturing will be to deliver in their whole worth chain to the park, Ms. Shah mentioned. “There is no specific incentive to shift to this park. But it will help them to consolidate their investment. All clearances will be taken care of by these parks,” she mentioned.
Ms. Shah, nonetheless, didn’t commit to a timeline to start manufacturing or enterprise actions at these parks. “It is difficult to put a timeline. The SPV formation will not take longer than one to one-and-a-half months. We have asked the State governments to expedite the process of finding the master developer. We are hopeful that two to three months down the line, we will have the basic institutional mechanism in place, which can get into the detailed planning of each park,” she mentioned.
The launch of cash from the Centre to these parks, nonetheless, will be linked to sure milestones and deliverables. Assistance from the Centre is promised to the tune of 30% of the challenge value, with a ceiling of ₹500 crore. “This money will be released in different stages depending on the progress. Our implementation period is till 2026-27. The SPV formation will happen immediately. Based on getting the master developer on board, and the works get started, the disbursement for the infrastructure will start,” she mentioned.
On the character of the grasp developer, she mentioned it could possibly be an anchor investor who’s a textile participant, or a developer of parks or infrastructure. “Also, for each of the projects, there could be separate developers. The SPV will have to take the call. The preferred option is one master developer,” Ms. Shah mentioned.
