Real Estate Biz Becomes Prosperous in Guise of SEZ

The Parliamentary standing committee on commerce said that thoughland was acquired for special economic zones ‘‘but no industries have come up there; only 154 SEZs have become operational out of 389 notified’’.

‘‘Instead real estate business has become prosperous in the guise of SEZ and the rich fertile land of farmers were being diverted without bringing real development in terms of establishing industry or IT units,’’ the committee said in its report tabled in Parliament.

Asking the government to ‘‘check such a trend which defeat the objective of industrialisation and higher exports’’, it said such decisions also ‘‘deny the country of scarce cultivable land resources and impoverish the farmers’’.

Such a practice belies the employment opportunities for the people who were promised so while acquiring their land, it added.