Gitanjali Gems’ SEZ project cancelled

The Board of Approval (BoA) headed by Commerce Secretary has cancelled the Gitanjali Gems’ special economic zone (SEZ) project in Maharashtra. In a similar move, BoA has also cancelled the approval of Karanja Infrastructure’s Free Trade and Warehousing Zones (FTWZ) in Raigad.

Gitanjali Gems’ and jewellery SEZ was notified on June 9, 2008. The approval given to the company was cancelled after the expiration of its formal approval on October 24, 2011. Till date, the developer was not able to convert green zone into industrial zone even after the lapse of 8 years from the date of notification.

 A SEZ is a designated duty free export hub to be treated as foreign territory for the purpose of trade operations, duties and tariffs.

SEZs contributes to about 23% of the total outbound shipments of the country. According to the commerce ministry, as on March 31, SEZs had attracted a total investment of Rs 3.76 lakh crore and generated employment opportunities for 15.91 lakh people.