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| 7 years on, J&K's mega food park still pipe-dream | | Ex-Agri Minister deliberately caused delay | | Syed Junaid Hashmi
Early Times Report
Jammu, Nov 19: Mega Food Park continues to be a pipe-dream for Jammu and Kashmir Government which has already spent seven years in getting approval from the Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries for setting up one such park in Kashmir valley.
Union Ministry of Food Processing Industries vide its letter dated 19-02-2014 accorded final approval to the SPV for setting up of the Mega Food Park in Jammu and Kashmir. The project is proposed to be set up with a capital investment of Rs. 79.43 crore. The project will be funded from different sources including grant of Rs. 50 crore from Union Ministry of Food Processing, Rs. 21.42 crore as term loan from Bank and Rs. 8 crore as promoters' contribution.
According to details available with Early Times, SPV which is RFK Greens Food Park Private Limited in this case, as on date has reportedly incurred an expenditure of Rs. 7.28 crore, out of which Rs. 6.71 crore is towards land, Rs. 19.33 lakh is towards project infrastructure and balance is towards PMC charges and preliminary and pre-operative expenses. Documents indicate that the company is in the process of meeting the requirements for the release of 1st tranche of 1st instalment.
Though the project is already late by more than 7 years since the Mega Food Parks Scheme was launched in the year 2008 but three years also elapsed since September 2012 when the Ministry for Food Processing gave in-principal approval of the setting up Mega Food Park at Lassipora in Pulwama district of Kashmir valley. If sources are to be believed, delay has more to do with non-seriousness of the previous Agriculture Ministry of NC-Congress coalition Government.
They added that the Ministry took little or no interest in getting this critically important project approved by the Government of India. They accused the ex-Minister for Agriculture of deliberately indulging in delaying tactics. Regarding the project, sources said that the company which is establishing this Mega Food Park is RFK Greens Food Park Private Limited, which was registered on November 14, 2012.
This SPV according to the details available with Early Times has four Directors namely Tariq Syed, Abdul Rashid Zargar, Davood Rashid and Abdul Waheed Kachroo. SPV is usually a subsidiary company with an asset/liability structure and legal status that makes its obligations secure even if the parent company goes bankrupt. Sources further said that it would take another two years for the park to become fully functional and that too, if the pace of work is speeded up.
It needs to be mentioned here that a committee on Agriculture of the Lok Sabha had expressed disappointment over the very slow progress in implementation of Mega Food Parks Scheme launched in the year 2008 in Jammu and Kashmir. The committee outrightly refuted the assertion of the State Government that delay in acquisition of contiguous land, complex procedures of obtaining various types of statutory clearances Government departments/agencies, inability of Public Sector Undertakings to take a lead role in execution of the project, lack of cohesiveness amongst the promoters delays in obtaining term loan sanction from banks were responsible for delay and poor physical performance.
It has directed the Union Food Processing Ministry to take proactive steps in consultation with State Government to reduce time lags caused such as problems related to statutory clearance and land acquisition. The Lok Sabha committee has noted that guidelines for establishing 'Mega Food Park Scheme' were issued on 24-08-2008.
These were subsequently revised in the year 2009, 2011 and 2012. The committee has said that avenues should be explored to fix the time limit and for making the scheme a reality covering the wide range of intended beneficiaries, it requires a revisit so as to formulate the appropriate and sector friendly guidelines keeping in view the interest of all the stake-holders and all the logistical requirements. However, despite these express directions, not much has moved on the ground. |
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