Essar Steel SEZ at Hazira referred to eGoM

An empowered group of ministers ( eGoM) will consider next month whether Essar Steel's SEZ project at Hazira has violated norms, which stipulate that such zones shall be set up on vacant land, an issue that has created inter-ministerial differences.

"The Essar Steel SEZ issue has been referred to the eGoM since the Finance Ministry did not agree to the views of the Commerce Ministry, which were also vetted by the Law Ministry," a senior official told PTI.

The Revenue Department in the Finance Ministry had alleged that the promoters of Essar Steel SEZ had violated the norms requiring that special economic zones could come up only on vacant land and not on developed plot.

The Commerce Ministry, however, contested the Revenue Department's views by stating that although the plot of Essar Steel SEZ had little development, it could not be construed as a totally developed facility.

The eGoM, headed by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, is likely to meet on February 4 with the Essar Steel SEZ issue being the main item on its agenda, the official said.

The eGoM also has Finance Minister P Chidambaram, Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath and Law Minister H R Bhardwaj among others.

The official said if the promoters do not get a favourable decision from the ministers' panel, it will be treated like a non-SEZ facility.

SEZ rules require the developer to declare that the land is vacant and no industrial activity exists at the time when the application was made. The Revenue Department, which carried out its own site survey, alleged that there were pre-existing structures at the Hazira plot when Essar applied for SEZ status.