Hinduja for free trade zone on Indo-Pak border

Hinduja Group Chairman Srichand P Hinduja today proposed to set up a free-trade zone on the Indo-Pak border between Rajasthan and Sind of Pakistan. The zone, to be built by the Sindhi community, would be a counterpart of the Bahamas or Bermuda in the US, Hinduja said.

Addressing the 12th International Sindh Sammelan in the city today, he said Ram Jethmalani would take up the issue with the Prime Minister shortly.

The forum of the Sindhi community would also approach the Pakistan government simultaneously. "We want to finish addressing the governmental issues related to this before the next annual meeting of the forum," he told Business Standard.

For the free trade zone, he said a few hundred acres of sandy desert on both sides of the border was needed, where the Sindhi community would invest "the required money to make the desert bloom."

Hinduja, an activist of the Sindhi community the worldover, said he had discussed the issue with the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India last month.

"We can tap the enterprise of the Sindhi community on both sides of the border for the mutual economic benefit of both the countries. This would improve relations between the two countries and create business opportunities for Indo-Pak trade and for South Asia exports to the rest of the world. Pakistani Sind too is an under-developed province and a free-trade zone should create economic opportunities for it as well," he explained.

The combined wealth of the Hinduja family is estimated to be around $8 billion.

Hinduja said a free trade zone would be able to tap the wealth of the parallel economy and would thereby help the gross domestic product of the country to grow more than the projected 8 per cent rate.

"I have studied the subject (the potential of a free trade zone to attract parallel economy) for the last 30 years. I am confident and have full faith on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Now, the economy has become mature to attract parallel wealth," he added.