Gujarat: Over 1,500 industrial units shut in GIDC estates, Assembly told

As on December 2020, the GIDCs with the maximum number of closed units are in Ankleshwar (Bharuch, 89 units), Panoli (Bharuch, 75 units), Sachin (Surat, 77 units), Sachin Apparel Park (Surat, 47 units), Chitra (Bhavnagar, 69 units), Vatva (Ahmedabad, 64 units), Vadhwan (Surendranagar, 62 units), Sidhhpur (Patan, 50 units) and Gandhinagar Electronics (51 units). The GIDCs in Gujarat usually are home to MSME units that were badly hit during the Covid pandemic last year.

In order to ensure that the closed units restart operations, the state government as part of the Gujarat Atmanirbhar package has been charging 10 per cent transfer fee instead of the earlier 15 per cent, the government stated. The government has also reduced the penalty that it imposes on closed units.

In the budget presented on Wednesday, finance minister Nitin Patel announced the opening of new industrial estates through GIDC at Jalotra in Banaskantha, Shekhpat in Jamnagar, Kadajodra in Gandhinagar, Pipavav in Amreli, Nagalpar in Rajkot. Similar estates have also been proposed in Patan, Anand, Mahisagar and Morbi districts.

Patel also said that multi-level sheds in industrial estates will be developed for MSMEs in Hanspura-Naroda, Umargam, Sarigam, Vapi, Sachin, Panoli, Ankleshwar, Jhagadia and Savli.