The Kerala State Small Industries Association has said a government order issued on July 29 under the aegis of the Local Self-Government Department placing industrial units under three categories will be a setback to efforts being made by the government to facilitate businesses in the State.
M. Khalid, president of the association, welcomed the move by the government to introduce a centralised inspection system for industrial units under the ease of doing business programme but felt that the recent order would affect the industries in a big way.
The order issued by the department has categorised industrial units into low-risk, medium-risk and high-risk categories. According to the order, even those units that have been approved by the Kerala State Pollution Control Board under the Green and White categories will fall within the high-risk category.
He said that including 44 categories of enterprises, operating in over 300 sq. metres of space, in the high-risk category was illogical. Industries should be categorised according to the nature of their operations and not on the basis of the space they occupied, said Mr. Khalid.
The order has said that industries in the low-risk category will be inspected once in three years, those in the medium-risk category will be inspected once in two years and those in the high-risk category will be inspected once in a year.
The Small Industries Association welcomed provisions in the new order that provided for avoiding inspections on the basis of anonymous and baseless complaints. Owners of business units should be allowed to record the process of inspections and no inspections should be held on the basis of complaints based on personal animosities.
Local bodies have been directed to look into issues like pollution and sanitation. Other issues would be addressed by the departments concerned. The order said that the business owner should be informed ahead of inspections. If inspection was being held on the basis of a complaint, the business owner should be given a copy of the complaint on demand, the order added.
