THE National Manufacturing Policy, which proposes to set up a cluster of National Investment and Manufacturing Zones (NIMZs) and promises fiscal support for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), was cleared by the Union Cabinet last week.
The policy aims at raising the share of manufacturing in GDP from the present 16 per cent to 25 per cent in a decade, for which NIMZs will get government support akin to those being availed of by integrated industrial townships, to build world-class infrastructure and also the benefit of single-window clearances and relatively flexible labour rules. The zones will make use of clean and energy-efficient technologies.
Stating that the seven investment regions along the Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor would be notified as NIMZs, apart from the five other locations being identified, the Commerce and Industry Minister, Mr Anand Sharma, said he was in talks with the Finance Ministry for the fiscal sops that were part of the policy.
Source : Exim News Service - NEW DELHI, Oct. 30