SEZ decision: Matanhy slams Centre

PANAJI: Even as the state government remained tightlipped over the Centre's decision to allow the K Raheja group more time to to develop their special economic zone (SEZ) in Goa, official sources said the government will once again approach the Centre and urge it to denotify the notified SEZs in Goa.
Reacting to the Centre's latest decision, Matanhy Saldanha, the convenor of Goa's Movement Against SEZ (GMAS) said the Union commerce secretary G K Pillai "was playing his own games".
Saldanha said the state government had all along said it did not want SEZs in Goa and that the former commerce minister Kamal Nath had also said the Centre would not thrust SEZs on Goa. "It is Pillai that is misleading everybody," he said.
Highly placed sources said that a few days back, the state government had recieved official communication from the Union commerce ministry informing the state government of the Centre's decision on the K Raheja group SEZs. However, the matter has not been officially deliberated in Goa. In fact, the industries secretary V K Jha is out of station and is expected to return only on June 7.
But highly placed sources said the state government will once again take up the issue with the Centre and inform the commerce ministry that its decision is "against the recommendation of the state government".
The Union commerce ministry's board of approval (BoA) headed by commerce secretary G K Pillai on Tuesday gave the K Raheja group more time to build its tax-free zones in Goa, Hyderabad and Navi Mumbai. The BoA was deliberating on proposals from SEZ developers K Raheja and DLF to denotify SEZs due to the economic slowdown.
Saldanha pointed out that the Centre had agreed to denotify DLF's SEZ, while disagreeing to denotify the Raheja SEZ. "This is a big conspiracy and fraud against Goa. The Centre is manipulating Goa on practically every issue where the state and Central governments are concerned. The Centre is protecting the interests of business houses and hoteliers against the interests of the people of Goa," the former tourism minister said.
In Goa, the K Raheja group was planning of developing an IT/ITES SEZ in an area of 107.17 ha at Verna with an investment of Rs 1723.41 crore. The other two SEZs in Goa are Meditab Specialities Private Limited's pharma SEZ at Bhutkhamb in Keri, and Peninsula Pharma Research Centre Private Limited's R & D Biotech Park/SEZ at Sancoale.