Bangalore New Airport Changed the History of Devanahalli

The State High Level Clearance Committee (SHLCC) chaired by Governor Rameshwar Thakur on Monday approved 28 mega projects, including seven new special economic zones (SEZ), five IT parks and two integrated townships, worth over Rs 49,000 crore in one go.

A majority of these big-ticket projects are coming up in and around Bangalore — four SEZs, three IT parks and two townships. But it is not clear how much farm land will be acquired for these projects. According to an official who was present in the committee meeting, a minimum of 25 acres have been sectioned for an ITES SEZ.
Though such a major policy decision was taken, there was no official briefing about it to the media. Besides the governor, all his three advisors and top officials of the Commerce and Industries department were present at the SHLCC meeting held at Vidhana Soudha.

Hundreds of representatives of investing firms had arrived and they gave presentations on their projects.
An airport-based multi-product SEZ by Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL) at Devanahalli (Rs 3,384.65 crore), an IT/ITES SEZ by Indus Megapolis IT Parks at Hoskote (Rs 215.25 crore), an IT/ITES/BPO SEZ by Gokuldas Images Infrastructure at Devanahalli (Rs 1,040 crore) and an IT/ITES SEZ by Milestone Buildcon in Bangalore north (Rs 710 crore) are among the major SEZ projects.

Among integrated townships: At Anekal by Shivakar Infrastructure (Rs 1,484 crore) and at Bangalore east taluk by Aasia Estate Developers (Rs 1,700 crore). Other projects cleared include steel plants, education institutions, power generation plans, cement factories and others.

With the construction of new Bengaluru international airport, Devanahalli has emerged as the most sought-after destination for investors evidenced by the fact that three major SEZs cleared in the SHLCC were close to the airport.

Can such a major policy decision be taken when there is no elected government? To this question, a top official in the government said: “We are not violating any rule. We are not forcing anyone to part with their land for industrial projects. The land is being acquired with the consent of land owners. No government land, no agricultural land, no green belt nor KIADB land is given for the new SEZs. We are only trying to facilitate industrial growth.”