ASIDE Scheme

• Full form: Assistance to States for Development of Export Infrastructure and Allied Activities (ASIDE) Scheme
• Launched: March 2002
• Objective: To involve the States in the growth of export by providing incentive-linked assistance to the State Governments and to create appropriate infrastructure for the development and growth of exports.

The ASIDE scheme was launched after subsuming the following 4 erstwhile schemes:

1. Export Promotion Industrial Park Scheme (EPIP),

2. Export Promotion Zones Scheme (EPZ),

3. Critical Infrastructure Balancing Scheme (CIB)

4. Export Development Fund (EDF) for the North-East and Sikkim

The scheme is a Centrally Sponsored Plan scheme, in which outlay is provided for development of export infrastructure, which is distributed among the States on the basis of the States’ export performance in the previous year.

• The 80% of the outlay is the State Component, which is used to allocate the states on the basis of approved criteria. Remaining 20% is the Central Component, which is used retained by the Central Government for meeting the requirements of inter-state projects, capital outlays of SEZs, activities relating to promotion of exports from the North Eastern Region as per the existing guidelines of the Export Development Fund and any other activity considered important by the Central Government.

The Nodal agencies in state provide the funds for the following:

1. Creation of new Export Promotion Industrial Parks/Zones (including Special Economic Zones (SEZs)/Agri-Business Zones) and augmenting facilities in the existing Zones.

2. Setting up of electronic and other related infrastructure in export conclaves.

3. Equity participation in infrastructure projects, including the setting up of SEZs.

4. Meeting the requirements of capital outlay of EPIPs/SEZs.

5. Development of complementary infrastructure such as roads connecting the production centres with ports, setting up of Inland Container Depots and Container Freight Stations.

6. Stabilizing power supply through additional transformers and islanding of export production centres, etc.

7. Development of minor ports and jetties of a particular specification to serve exports.

8. Assistance for setting up Common Effluent Treatment Plants.

9. Other projects of national and regional importance.