Jamshedpur, Aug. 13: In what would be a major boost for the state’s automobile component sector, the Union government today gave its final clearance for developing an auto cluster at the Adityapur Industrial Area.

A final decision was taken at a meeting of the apex committee on industrial infrastructure upgradation scheme in New Delhi.

Expressing his happiness over the development, the president of the Adityapur Small Industries Association (ASIA), S.N. Thakur, told The Telegraph over phone from New Delhi that this was a major achievement for the units based in Adityapur, the state’s largest industrial zone.

“The cluster, the first in Jharkhand, would boost the auto component sector,” he said, adding that more than 70 per cent of the approximately 800 units based in the area were ancillary units of Tata Motors, manufacturing spare parts for the automobile giant.

The cluster development project, comprising 10 units, aims at developing common testing, designing and waste disposal facility for the area’s units.

The proposed auto cluster will have a high tech laboratory, which would be equipped to provide designing and testing facilities to industrial units.

ASIA officials said that they also propose to develop a common effluent treatment plant and hazardous waste management facility, which are presently not available in the entire industrial belt.

Apart from the central and state governments, ASIA would also be part of this cluster development project.

Sources said the Centre would provide a 75 per cent subsidy to the Rs 65-crore project.

The state government would contribute 10 per cent and industrialists based in the region would pay the rest.

ASIA has been trying hard to get the Centre’s nod and help in getting the auto cluster up and running.

The Adityapur Industrial Area Development Authority (Aiada) has already earmarked 12 acres for developing the common facilities for the cluster.

“Now that we have the approval, we are looking forward to start construction work as soon as possible. The Centre would soon provide us the sanction letter for this project. In the meantime, we would complete the other formalities like transferring the land to Aiada for the proposed auto cluster,” added Thakur.