For long, the State government tried its best to industrialise southern districts, but can’t even claim to have succeeded partially in the task.
Now, that could change. The Union Government’s Department of Electronics and Information Technology has notified Tirunelveli district as an ‘Electronic Manufacturing Cluster’ like Sriperumpudur near Chennai under its Modified Special Incentive Package Scheme (M-SIPS).
With the notification, the prospects of attracting huge investments down south have brightened.
Sample this. Since Tirunelveli district has obtained the Centre’s special status, any electronic goods manufacturing unit coming up here will get Centre’s investment subsidy of 30 per cent. If it is set up at the Nanguneri Multiproduct Special Economic Zone, an additional 20 per cent grant will be given to take the total quantum of subsidy to a jaw-dropping 50 per cent.
In addition, no tax would be levied on its products for the first five years and 50 per cent tax exemption would be given for another five years if the manufacturing unit takes root within the sprawling 2,500 acres of the SEZ.
Another advantage is that its products can be sold in the domestic market, though they are made in the SEZ, since the unit has come up under the ‘Electronics Manufacturing Cluster’ scheme.
“As these conditions are so favourable after the Union Government notified the district under this special scheme, we expect hefty investments in Tirunelveli district in electronic industry in the near future, especially after the Global Investors Meet to be organised in September this year,” N. Eswara Rao, president, AMRL Hitech City Limited, Nanguneri, told The Hindu here on Sunday.
Since skilled workforce from the district is already employed in various parts of the country and abroad and a university, 20 engineering and 25 arts and science colleges in the district are producing good number of graduates every year, finding the right candidates for recruitment would not be difficult for investors.
“We expect this favourable situation to transform the district into an ‘electronic goods manufacturing hub’ in the next couple of years,” said Mr. Rao.
