Government rejects GMR's Hyderabad SEZ proposal

The government has rejected the request of GMR Hyderabad Aviation SEZ Ltd to change the sector of Hyderabad SEZ from 'aviation' to 'multi product airport-based' saying the special enclave is not a part of the airport.

The government has rejected the request of GMR Hyderabad Aviation SEZ Ltd to change the sector of Hyderabad SEZ from 'aviation' to 'multi product airport-based' saying the special enclave is not a part of the airport.

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The decision was taken by an inter-ministerial Board of Approval, headed by commerce secretary Rahul Khullar, late last month, an official said.

"The SEZ is not part of the Airport and a multi-product SEZ is required to have a minimum land area of 1,000 hectares. So the Board rejected the proposal," the official said.

A multi-product special economic zone (SEZ) encompasses all products and services and has a minimum area requirement of 1,000 hectares.

In its application, the GMR Hyderabad Aviation SEZ had on January 19, sought a change in the usage of the Andhra Pradesh duty free enclave from 'aviation' to 'multi product' airport-based zone.

When GMR was asked about its future course of action, its spokesperson said, "it is too early to comment on our future plans. ..... The proposal has been rejected hardly a fortnight ago".