The prospects of Kalaburagi district getting the multi-million crore National Investment and Manufacturing Zone (NIMZ) appear to be bright with the State government sanctioning Rs. 10 crore for undertaking the techno-feasibility study and prepare a detailed project report to the Infrastructure Leasing and Finance Services (ILFS).
According to the information available with The Hindu here on Thursday, a team of experts from ILFS had visited the proposed site of 12,500 acres in Chittapur taluk in Kalaburagi and certified that it was good for NIMZ as it was close to the proposed Kalaburagi Airport, railway stations at Chittapur, Sedam and Kalaburagi and adjacent to the Inter-State highway connecting Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.
When contacted, Prayank Kharge, Chittapur MLA, said the Hyderabad Karnataka Region Development Board (HKRDB) had also agreed to provide another Rs. 1 crore to conduct the Social Impact Assessment Study in the proposed NIMZ site, which was expected to attract an investment of more than Rs. 30,000 crore and open up new employment opportunities to more than 1.5 lakh people.
Delays and dead-ends
The previous UPA government had sanctioned NIMZ to Karnataka and it was to be established at Narsapur in Tumakuru district and Chittapur in Kalaburagi district. However, the proposal for Chittapur NIMZ was almost given up.
However, the proposal got a new lease of life after the Secretary of the Industries Department Amitabh Kant visited the site and said that all the States had been sanctioned two NIMZ each and hence two NIMZ should be set up in Karnataka too.
Acquisition plans
Mr. Kharge, who was instrumental for doing all the spade-work of selection of a suitable site for the proposed NIMZ, said that out of the 12,500 acres of land proposed for setting up the NIMZ, more than 3,000 acres belonged to the government and the remaining land was not very productive and its soil fertility was very low. Now, 9,000-odd acres of land had to be acquired for the purpose.
He said the government was also considering his request for including Sedam and Chittapur in zone one to enable the industries coming up in these taluks got more incentives.
At present, Sedam and Chittapur had been bracketed in zone II, which offered little incentives to the new industries.
NIMZ proposed on 12,500 acres near the site for Kalaburagi airport in Chittapur taluk
HKRDB promises to pay Rs. 1 crore for the Social Impact Assessment Study
