Chandigarh, Dec. 12: Reliance Industries is setting up a 25,000-acre special economic zone here, touted to be the country’s largest. The company today signed a memorandum of understanding with the Haryana government for the same.
Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani has termed the perceived growing gap between the rich and the poor as “history” and “irrelevant” and said his company is partnering with Haryana because of the ample opportunities it offers. “We are partnering with the Haryana government for building the infrastructure and providing world-class facilities to large companies in India.”
The MoU is between Haryana State Industrial Development Corporation (HSIDC) and Reliance Ventures Ltd. “The cost of building such a huge infrastructure would be about Rs 40,000 crore,” he said.
The agreement was signed by Reliance director Anand Jain and HSIDC managing director Rajeev Arora in the presence of Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda.
“We expect it to generate employment opportunities for millions of people in the state. The task is to create jobs for the young. It will change not only Haryana’s face but also India’s,” Ambani added.
The chairman said he would expedite the process of setting up the project. “Within the next 60 days we would chalk out the exact location of the project. Reliance will not only invest but also attract investment,” he said adding that the company has the expertise and experience for launching big projects.
Talking about the project’s feasibility, Ambani said it would compete with those in Dubai, Malaysia and China. “Investment will not be a barrier. The results will be visible in the next 24 to 30 months. We have built facilities from scratch and have been building basic infrastructure,” he said.
Ambani said Reliance would leverage on Haryana’s skilled manpower.
“Apart from basic industries, the project will attract next-generation businesses like bio-technology. Of the total area of the SEZ, 6,500 acres have been earmarked for low-polluting industries, 5,000 acres each for basic infrastructure and commercial establishments, 3,750 acres for residential purposes and 1,250 acres each for institutional area, leisure and entertainment,” he added.
