Cos allotted land in medical park can’t sell them for 10 yrs

Noida: Companies allotted land in the medical device park near Noida international airport can’t sell the plots for 10 years, the Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority (YEIDA) has specified in its revised regulations.Arun Vir Singh, the YEIDA CEO, said the decision was taken because some allottees were found to have sold land within a few years at markets, which are much higher than the subsidised price at which they had been handed the plots.In 2022 – when the Centre approved YEIDA’s detailed project report (DPR) for the medical park – the plot sizes ranged from 4,000- 80,000sqm, with rates varying from Rs 6,670 to Rs 4,050 a sqm, respectively. During the same period, industrial plots of similar sizes in other areas were available for Rs 9,668 to Rs 5,880 a sqm, respectively.According to DPR norms, land rates for medical device parks are hiked by 5% every financial year.For the 2023-2024 period, allotment rates for the Medical Device Park ranged from Rs 7,010 to Rs 4,260 per square meter for plot sizes up to 4,000 sqm and above 80,000 sqm, respectively. Industrial plots during this time were available at rates ranging from Rs 13,542 to Rs 8,240 a sqm for similar sizes.“YEIDA has decided to change some conditions. These changes will be incorporated in the upcoming plot scheme for the medical park. The allottees will have to set up a functional manufacturing unit at all costs. There will also be a ban on the sale of plots for 10 years. The screening committee will closely look into the company's profile. Only those that are genuinely interested in setting up medical manufacturing units will be considered,” CEO Singh said.According to allotment rules, companies must complete construction within two years from the date lease deeds were executed. They must also obtain a functional certificate from the Authority.Sources said the sale of plots at the park wasn’t allowed without obtaining a functional certificate from the Authority. “So, if plots are up for grabs at market rates within a few years of allotment, it raises questions on YEIDA’s scrutiny of companies before handing out the certificates,” a source said. YEIDA has been designated as the state implementation agency by the department of pharmaceuticals at the ministry of chemical and fertilizers for developing the medical park.The 350-acre park is in Sector 28, off the Yamuna Expressway. It is near the airport, Film City and other industrial parks in the region. Development of civic amenities, such as roads and drainage networks, are being done.So far, 73 plots have been allocated to various companies, such as Vanguard Diagnostics, Q-line Biotech, Bioradmedisys, Allengers, Epsilon, Romsons, Betamed, Avienbio, and DiaSys, among others.On Friday, TI Medical, a joint venture between Fortune India 500 company Murugappa Group’s engineering firm Tube Investments of India (TII) and Premji Invest, was allotted 11 acres to establish a manufacturing unit in the park.