Mahindras sign deal for 3,000 acre SEZ near Pune

Zone expects to attract Rs 9,000 cr investment, create 75,000 jobs.

The Mahindra group today signed an agreement with the Maharashtra government to invest Rs 2000 crore to develop a 3,000-acre special economic zone at Karla, near Pune.

The SEZ will be developed as a joint venture with the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC), and is expected to be fully operational in five years. The MIDC would pick up a 26 per cent equity stake in the project, a state government official told Business Standard.

He said the government's equity would be cashless, in lieu of land and other facilities. The details were yet to be worked out, he added.

The SEZ is expected to attract around Rs 9,000 crore in investments considering its proximity to the Mumbai and Pune airports and the ports at Mumbai and Nhava Sheva.

M&M's Executive Director and President, Infrastructure Development, Arun Nanda, said, "We plan to attract high-end electronic and computer hardware and other non-pollutant industries and are already in talks with some investors from Japan and Singapore." The SEZ is also expected to create 75,000 jobs once it is fully operational.

Nanda said, "If the land acquisition is over by the end of this year, then we expect that it will take around two to two-and-half years to complete the infrastructure development in the SEZ and within five years, it will be completely occupied."

The group is also developing two other SEZs in Chennai and Jaipur. Nanda said the same Singapore-based consultants would also plan the Karla site.

"We will be spending Rs 15 to Rs 20 lakh per acre on infrastructure development. The SEZ is planned on the work-live-learn-play concept and we expect around a third of the workers to live within the SEZ," Nanda said.

A memorandum of understanding to this effect was signed by Nanda and State Industry Secretary VK Jairath, in the presence of Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, M&M Group Chairman Keshub Mahindra and Vice-Chairman Anand Mahindra.

When asked about the power situation in the state, Nanda said, "We have been assured by the state government of adequate power supply to our SEZ, and besides this, we will also be coming up with a captive power plant."

Speaking on the occasion, Deshmukh said, "Maharashtra has been always a premier industrial state of the country and in the case of SEZs too, Maharashtra has taken the lead over other states by giving approval to 26 proposals and we are in discussion with the promoters of 14 more SEZs."