Under the new policy, the price of an industrial plot will now be 125 per cent more than the last highest bid price in that particular notified industrial area. This is being interpreted as nearly 200 per cent increase in industrial land prices since the last bidding process in 2006.
When one buys land in Pantnagar, the government will charge a premium of 125 per cent on the last highest bid price, which was Rs 3,600 per square metre in 2006.
Sources said a substantial chunk of land was still available at key industrial areas like Haridwar and Pantnagar, which are being developed by the State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation of Uttarakhand Ltd (SIDCUL), a state government enterprise.
According to an estimate, nearly 300 acres is available in both the Haridwar and Pantnagar industrial estates, where top companies like Tata Motors, Hero Honda, Ashok Leyland, Nestle and others have set up shop.
With the concessional industrial package (CIP) coming to an end on March 31, 2010, the government is keen to make money since scores of industries are ready to buy more land.
Chief Minister B C Khanduri has indicated that his government would not go for open bidding as far as the allotment of industrial plots was concerned. Nearly 100 firms including Bajaj Auto, Nestle, and Tata Motors have approached the government to buy land in the notified areas of Pantnagar and Haridwar for their expansion programmes.
The existing base rates at both the Pantnagar and Haridwar industrial estates are Rs 2,500 per sq metre. The land prices in both the estates have appreciated 400 per cent since 2004. In 2004, the land price was Rs 560 per sq metre, which rose to Rs 1,500 per sq metre in 2006.
Ashok Leyland, the flagship company of the Hinduja Group, has decided to double its investment in the state from Rs 1000 crore to Rs 2000 crore as part of its expansion plan, a proposal already cleared by the government. Early this year, the company was allotted 17 acres of land at Pantnagar.
Similarly, Tata Motors, which is investing Rs 2,000 crore at its manufacturing facility in Pantnagar, is also planning to buy more land.
Meanwhile, the Uttarakhand government have started taking action against all those industries which are taking benefits of tax holiday scheme but have not begun any construction or production at the industrial plots given to them at Haridwar and Pantnagar industrial estates.
Scores of industrial plots have been cancelled so far and all others, which have not started their production, are being given notices. The sources said all these cancelled plots can also be given to all those industries which are interested in buying more land for their expansion programme.
