Chennai: “In Tamil Nadu, industrial approvals must be issued within 21 days; otherwise, a fine will be imposed,” the Tamil Nadu Investment Promotion Commission has instructed.
With the aim of making Tamil Nadu a $1.5 trillion economy by 2036, the Tamil Nadu Investment Promotion Commission was established on Nov. 3. The Chief Secretary will serve as the chairperson, and the Industries Secretary as the coordinator. Along with them, there will be a total of 18 official members. The commission will work to attract investments and monitor the conversion of announced investments into actual projects.
In this context, the first meeting of this commission was held the day before yesterday at the Secretariat under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary M. Sai Kumar. During the meeting, investments exceeding Rs. 200 crore, projects that would create more than 5,000 jobs, investments related to free trade agreements, and investments from overseas Tamils were reviewed.
It was decided to notify approvals granted after the expiry of the 21-day deadline, impose fines on those responsible for violations, and expedite the resolution of pending applications.
Since last May, 112 memorandums of understanding have been signed for investments worth more than Rs. 1.14 lakh crore, creating employment for 1.42 lakh people. Of these, 83 agreements have reached the land acquisition stage. The implementation rate of the agreements stands at 74.11 percent. In addition, work has already begun on 18 of the 37 announcements for the industry sector in the Vetrith Thamizhagam report, accounting for 48 percent.
Discussions were held to expedite the preparation work for the new industrial policy 2027 and also on the validity period of the current policies. In the Municipal Administration Department, the business license period has been increased from 3 years to 10 years, and in the School Education Department, the recognition period for private schools has been increased from 3 years to 20 years. In the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Department, industrial plots will be allotted within 30 days.
Under the package incentive scheme, while Rs. 1,700 crore was being provided annually, subsidies totaling Rs. 2,000 crore have been disbursed in just the past 6 months. The commission also instructed that subsidies be provided for new projects that have signed memorandums of understanding, and an additional Rs. 1,600 crore in funds has also been requested.
To boost cargo exports... Tamil Nadu has set a target to increase cargo exports from $59 billion to $72 billion. Industries will be allowed to independently set up their own high-tension and extra-high-tension power connections, and developers of large projects will be permitted to procure power equipment themselves.
Necessary infrastructure issues were discussed, and SIPCOT was instructed to assess electricity and water requirements for the next 10 years and beyond.
The Tamil Nadu government has stated in a press release that instructions have been issued to allocate unused lands and unutilized industrial plots belonging to SIPCOT, TIDCO, and ELCOT to investors, to conduct export seminars at the district level, and to treat tourism projects as industrial projects and expedite them through the single-window system.
