Ludhiana, March 19, 2019: Today a session on Ease of Doing Business held under the state government business Reform Action Plan released by government of India under which various reforms and online services have been developed on the invest Punjab Business First Portal as well as online portal of concerned Departments, the session held at the office of GM DIC Ludhiana in which officials from Director of Industries & Commerce, Government of Punjab and Officials from PSIEC have interacted with the stake holders, disseminate about effective steps and policy.
Er. Vishav Bandhu Monga Deputy Director along with Harshpal Kaur Asstt Directior, Department of Industries & Commerce, Govt. of Punjab have discussed the various reforms and policies under the Invest Punjab Scheme
S. Gurmeet Singh Kular President FICO along with Sh. Rajeev Jain Secretary FICO, Shri OP Bassi President Focal Point Phase 8 Industrial Association & S. Raghbir Singh Sohal President Ludhiana Plywood Manufacturers Association have attended the session, and raised the under noted Obstacle For Ease of Doing business before the team of officials from Dept. of Industries & Commerce & PSIEC
1. Upgradation of Infrastructure of Focal points
For Ease of doing business the first and foremost requirement is the ease of moving on roads but the Infrastructure of Focal Point especially the Phase VIII is in its worst shape ever, the condition of the Roads and the sewerage in the Focal Points is so miserable that the industrialists feel ashamed to bring foreign customers as well as domestic customers to factories through these roads. The condition of the roads is so poor that the movement of goods is done at the risk. Moreover, Female staff and Workers are showing reluctance in joining Industries established in Focal Points, as they feel unsafe due to poor Roads and Infrastructure. It has been also been observed that at least 70% of the street lights in the focal point are not working, it is advised that all the street lights should be replaced with modern day LED lights, which are not only energy efficient but also more bright. It is notable that the Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh announced Rs. 32 crore for the complete facelift of the Ludhiana Focal Points, but none of the work has been started yet. We request you to kindly look into the matter personally and do the needful to facilitate the industry.
2. Central Ground water Authority
The Central Ground Water Authority or CGWA has set 31st March 2019, whereas more than 4800 industrial units have applied for the NOC, out of which only 38 Units have got the NOC, those unit which got NOC are mostly from the Construction Domain, Very less number of industrial units have got the NOC as yet, government has demanded many industrial units to adopt the nearby villages and fulfil their water requirements, there is not as many villages in Punjab to equate the number of industry, moreover it is not practically feasible, which is a very serious matter of concern as from the 01st of April 2019 there would be a penalty of Rs.150000/- (One Lakh Fifty Thousand) per month. The major point of concern is that the municipal corporations are not providing the water to the industry, so industry needs to abstract the water from the ground only, It is also demanded that the Micro & Small Units should be exempted from the NOC as The Usage of Water in Micro & Small Units is very minimal, so these industries should be exempted from NOC for Water abstraction.
3. Feasibility of Power connections
It has been observed that existing 66 KV Power Feeding systems of Ludhiana are running to its maximum capacity, moreover Ludhiana is now a Smart City, considering the growth of a Smart City, the demand of power is on the rise, it is notable that more than 50 Industrial Connections in Ludhiana are pending due to feasibility limitation of the existing grids of Ludhiana. The biggest industrial grids in Ludhiana, Dhandari-1 & Dhandari-2 are running to their capacities, another grid is proposed, but the work on the same has not been started as yet, The pending 50 industrial connections one issued, will not only generate more revenue for the PSPCL, but also generate the revenue for the Government in form of GST, Property Tax, Octroi and other taxes. There is a need to upgrade the existing power distribution system of Ludhiana, FICO requests you to kindly get the power systems of Ludhiana strengthened before the summers, as the power demand will be on peak in summers.
4. Impact of Pending Enhancement of Land Compensation by PSIEC
In reference to the pending demand notices issued by PSIEC to the allotees of the Focal Point Phase VIII Ludhiana, demanding Rs.474.00 per square Yard on account of compensation of enhancement of rates as per orders of the Honorable Punjab & Haryana High Court read with the orders of Honorable Supreme Court of India, Due to the PSIEC Enhancement Pendency, the industry situated in Phase VIII is suffering a lot.
a. Financial Institutions
All the works related to financial institutes including banks are stagnant, as they all demand the Clearance Certificate from PSIEC. The industrial units established in Focal Point Phase VIII cannot get their limits enhanced from banks, they can’t get their bank accounts transferred, which is hitting the industry very badly, and the growth of the industry is stagnant.
b. Invest Punjab
According to new industrial policy 2017, a new application from any industrial unit from Focal Point Phase VIII who wants to be benefitted by the Invest Punjab policy of Government of Punjab, is not processed due the same reason.
The matters related to the financial institutions or new investment schemes in accordance to the new industrial policy of Punjab are for the betterment and the growth of industrial unit, which are being hindered due to the pending enhancement notice. It is requested that these works should not be affected by the pendency to facilitate the industry.