39 firms evince interest to invest in Mangaluru Plastic Park

Dakshina Kannada Member of Parliament Nalin Kumar Kateel said that he is hopeful that the park will become operational in a year

Member of Parliament Nalin Kumar Kateel reviewing the works of the Plastic Park coming up in Gunjimutt in the outskirts of the city. | Photo Credit: Raghava M.

As many as 39 firms have shown interest to invest in Mangaluru Plastic Park by way of opening their units in the park that is coming up on 104 acres in Ganjimutt in the outskirts of the city.

The Plastic Park in Mangaluru is one among 10 such parks the Union Government is setting up across the country. Under the scheme mooted by the Union Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers, the Centre is aiming at increasing investment, production and export in plastics sector. The Union Government is bearing 50% of the project cost, while the remaining 50% should be borne by the State government.

K.C. Ganapathy, Assistant Executive Engineer, Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB), Mangaluru Zone, which is the implementing agency of the plastic park, said 52 sites will come up on 41.97 acres of land. The size of the sites vary between 0.21 acres and 2.13 acres. In all, 26.2 acres of land have been earmarked for the park and open space. The green belt will be on 1.1 lakh square meters (about 25 acres), while parking space for vehicles will cover 12,252 square meters. The road length in the park will be 3,291 meters, he said.

The firms will get all basic facilities. In addition, there will be a warehouse, a common laboratory, a guest house, a hostel each for men and women, cafeteria, an effluent treatment plant and a building of the Central Institute of Plastic Engineering and Technology, the official said, adding that 39 companies have shown an interest to invest in the park.

The Joint Director of District Industries Centre, Gokuldas Nayak, said that the total project cost has been estimated at ₹62.77 crore which will be shared equally by the Union government and the KIADB as ₹31.38 crore each.

Mr. Nayak said that civil works have begun, such as constructing roads and creating other basic infrastructure at an estimated cost of ₹16.45 crore. These works are likely to be done by October. The construction of guest house and other buildings has also been taken up at an estimated cost of ₹19.93 crore. This is likely to be completed by November, he said.

Reviewing the progress of the works on June 3, Dakshina Kannada Member of Parliament Nalin Kumar Kateel said that he is hopeful that the park will become operational in a year. It will provide direct employment to 1,000 persons and indirect employment to 10,000 people. “A majority of the employment will be for local residents,” he said.

Mr. Kateel said he will shortly invite the Union Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilizers Bhagwanth Khuba to lay the foundation stone for the park.

During the meeting with local residents and other stakeholders on Saturday, the Canara Plastic Association president B.A. Nazeer told Mr. Kateel that the rate of land at the park is too high for entrepreneurs and sought to reduce it. He said allotment of sites should be done at the District Industries Centre, which will give preference to local small entrepreneurs.

Mangaluru City North MLA Y. Bharath Shetty also attended.