Iffco plans multi-product SEZ in Nellore

Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Limited (Iffco) is planning to set up a multi-product SEZ with a focus on agri and food processing industry on 2,700 acres in coastal district of Nellore in Andhra Pradesh.

The land was acquired in the past by Iffco for setting up a fertiliser plant, which could not materialise due to non-availability of feedstock among other reasons.

While accepting the change in usage of land as proposed by the company, the Andhra Pradesh government had sent a recommendation letter to the Commerce Ministry seeking approval for the multi-product SEZ last week with a set of conditions, according to a senior official in the industries department.

"At least Rs 500 crore investment in the development of infrastructure required for the SEZ, an assurance to create 10,000 jobs, setting up own training facility with a capacity to train 1,000 candidates and adoption of a local ITI for improving the quality of training in the facility are among the conditions put forward by the government in exchange for its acceptance of the Iffco proposal," the government official told Business Standard.

The proposed multi-product SEZ is being christened as Kisan SEZ since the developer is a federation comprising over 38,000 farmers' cooperatives in addition to its primary focus on agri-based industry, the official said.