‘Time Maharashtra took the lead again in bringing in special economic zones’

“The problem is we have competition (from) Vietnam and Myanmar… In garments we have already lost to Bangladesh. So the fact is that we need to act very, very swiftly,” Mahindra said.

Stressing the need for more special economic zones and coastal economic zones in Maharashtra, which has a strong port infrastructure, Mahindra said, “My point to the Niti Aayog and PMO is that China did this in the 80s. To bring change, they created zones on an experimental basis. If you wanted to lower taxes, you wanted to exempt certain labour laws, do it here. It didn’t cause that much political strife. It was an experiment. But it was an experiment that changed all of China. I think India needs to do it. I think it’s time Maharashtra took the lead again in bringing in special economic zones. We are port-based, there is land in Navi Mumbai allocated for this.”
He said it is time for Maharashtra to reassert its leadership as the preferred destination for industry.

Mahindra spoke of a time when Maharashtra had began to lose its dominance as fiscal incentives were given to backward areas in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, that have the highest percentage of manufacturing.

“But the fact is that under a new GST regime, and if you look at the philosophy of this government, they are not going to give sops like that any more. So there is going to be natural gravitation back to places which have inherent advantages…So I think it is time for Maharashtra to rise again…”

The conclave included three sessions on Maharashtra’s agriculture, infrastructure and industry and saw the participation of senior bureaucrats and industry experts from the three fields. Mahindra said in order to regain the lead, the government must create areas which are large and which allow low cost accommodation in order to attract start-ups. He also said one must not underestimate how powerful India can be in the entertainment industry which is a job-creator and focus should be on building it.

Also speaking at the conclave, state Agriculture Minister Anil Bonde said farmers may soon be able to lease their agricultural land for cultivation. He also indicated the risk factor in crop insurance scheme may be increased to 90 per cent from 70 per cent. Farmers have been incurring losses on account of the Maharashtra Tenancy and Agricultural Land Act. While there are no curbs on leasing their homes, the provisions of the Act have been preventing farmers from leasing their land out for cultivation, Bonde said. He said the state government has sent a proposal to the Union government for making changes in the law to allow leasing of farm lands.

At the session on infrastructure, Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister Bhushan Gagrani said basic infrastructure enables social equality. He also said that at a time of an economic slowdown, the government should increase its spending on basic infrastructure facilities. Listing out the state government’s big ticket projects including the Mumbai Metro, the Mumbai-Pune hyperloop and the Marathwada water grid, he said projects worth Rs 11 lakh crore were currently underway in the state.