The Nitish government has blocked setting up of Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in Bihar saying the plan can severely affect the farmers who own lands and does not do much to promote industrialization as touted by its proponents.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, while talking to media persons at his residence on Monday, said he has asked the Prime Minister to open a multi-party dialog on SEZ to discuss its pluses and minuses but he was of the opinion that the plan would hurt the farmers more than anyone else because of the provisions of aggressive land acquisition in the name of development.
"We will be only more than happy to provide lands to major investors like Ratan Tata or Anand Mahindra but we must develop Bihar by means other than SEZ because of its negative effects on the state's agricultural sector," Kumar said.
The Chief Minister also said the government was in the process of re-evaluating the state's land acquisition policies.
"Under the existing policies, the land is taken over from farmers at the government rates. This is not fair to the landowners, who, under the revised plan, would be offered the current market price of the land," he said.
Even while acquiring lands from the farmers, efforts will be made to first take up infertile lands or lands that are not appropriate for any kind of farming, the Chief Minister said.
(Source-Patna Daily,30/01/07)
