PUDUCHERRY: Chief Minister N Rangasamy directed the Puducherry Planning Authority (PPA) and Department of Science and Technology and Environment (DSTE) to speed up the process of granting approvals to industries. Procedures must be simplified and conditional approval can be provided when possible, he told officials during a surprise visit on Monday.
This comes as the government focuses on attracting industrial investment and aims to provide subsidies. However, industries in the Union Territory continue to complain of long delays in new enterprises and expansion of industries obtaining approval.
Despite the CM ensuring to take action on immediate approvals, the representatives of various industry organisations complained that they were not getting permission. Following this, Rangasamy made a surprise visit to the PPA on Monday and reviewed the various processes of granting approvals for industries and building plans.
Though applications are submitted online, the processing takes time and investors continue waiting. Often, such investors go away and invest in the neighbouring areas of Tamil Nadu. Several industrialists in the Union Territory have expanded their projects to the adjoining areas of TN bordering Puducherry. The Chief Minister opined that the procedures should be simplified wherever the delay is due to such bottlenecks and ensure that approvals are granted in the minimum time, so that investors set up their business here, government sources said.
Parallelly, he also called DSTE officials to the PPA office and also inquired with them about proposals that were pending approvals and the reasons behind it. When the officials cited the requirement for data collection from various bodies for pollution control clearances -- like Coastal Zone Regulation Zone and Effluent treatment plans -- the CM suggested the department look into the possibility of granting conditional approval.
Chief Town Planner S Mahalingam, PPA member Secretary Kandar Selvam, DSTE officials were present in the discussion.