India Intelligence Report

 

 

   Singapore Distraught About SEZ Freeze

  The Singapore government has demanded explanation from the government on the recent policy to freeze the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) approvals and notifications.
     
 

The Singapore government has reportedly demanded explanation from the government on the recent policy to freeze the Special Economic Zone (SEZ) approvals and notifications.

Singapore's ire comes from its realty major Ascendas's proposed SEZ valued at USD 1 billion in Tamil Nadu and the Singapore High Commissioner has reportedly written to the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) about the uncertainty. Singapore is also unhappy that the SEZ freeze comes when senior Indian officials had actively courted its officials to invest in SEZ.

The government had halted all SEZ approvals because of political and farmer unrests over arbitrary allocation of land for SEZ and haphazard planning. With elections in key states coming up, the government stopped all SEZ till it develops a policy that would benefit all. An empowered Group of Ministers (eGoM) has come up with a plan that will make disposed farmers co-owners of SEZ but this plan has not been approved yet.