Krishnagar, March 2: The Nadia administration today approved proposals from 19 small-scale entrepreneurs to build food parks and other related units as part of a proposed export processing zone.

District magistrate Rajesh Pandey said they would put in about Rs 12 crore on their own as capital expenditure and the rest would be taken as loan from financial institutions.

?The government will help the youths get loans at simplified terms. Besides, they will get loans at lower interest as small industrialists and tax exemptions according to rules,? Pandey added.

Nadia has been selected with the two 24-Parganas and Murshidabad as export processing zones for food and vegetables. But work has been slow on the zone which was supposed to have been set up by 2003.

Pandey said there are proposals to build food parks, cold storages and packaging units.

?Today, we held meetings with 44 entrepreneurs of Nadia and adjacent districts like North 24-Parganas and Calcutta, who showed interest in production of food items like potato chips, snacks, pickles, jams and biscuits. We have approved the proposals of 19 entrepreneurs. The project cost will be around Rs 40 crore.?

Kalyani, Ranaghat and Krishnagar have been selected as centres for the proposed food processing units.