Industrialists write to CM, seek relief from ‘pestering PSIEC’
Ludhiana, July 16
Federation of Punjab Small Industries Associations (FOPSIA) has written to the state government to free the industrial plots from Punjab Small Industries and Export Corporation (PSIEC).
Pestered by the cost-effective enhancement notices, FOPSIA claimed, in a letter to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, that even after paying the full price, plot holders were threatened with cancellation of their allotment over ‘minor’ issues.
Badish Jindal, president, FOPSIA, said, “Plot holders are hesitant to purchase land at Focal Points as the PSIEC has even cancelled the allotments purchased decades ago simply because the plot holders failed to establish their businesses on schedule. Instead of finding the reason, the department quickly cancelled the plots, and even if holders started the business just one or two years later, they were served notices. Further, if the plot owner wants to manufacture a new product, he must obtain PSIEC’s approval. Even if the company’s name is changed on the registered plots, a lengthy process must be followed, and if the plot is sold, plot holders are required to visit the PSIEC for months.”
Federation of Industrial and Commercial Organisation (FICO) president Gurmit Singh Kular added that in some cases, even after depositing the fixed price of the plot, holders were asked to pay lakhs over ‘price enhancement’.
Plot holders at Ludhiana’s Focal Point Phase 8 have received notices for price increases years after purchasing the plot.
“Because of PSIEC’s arbitrariness, businesspeople who purchased acres of land decades ago are unable to obtain permission to split them. In many cases, when a family or company splits up, they are forced to sell the plot because the PSIEC does not allow any holder to split it. Other states’ industrial areas do not have such strict rules. In many cases, businessmen want to sell a portion of their land to pay off a bank loan, but due to the department’s high-handedness, they must forfeit the entire plot,” Jindal stated in his letter to the CM.
