Centre approves 6 projects worth Rs. 3,730-mn

New Delhi: The Commerce Ministry has approved six industry clusters worth Rs 373 crore under the Industrial Infrastructure Upgradation Scheme (IIUS), out of which Rs 247 crore will be in the form of the central government’s grant.

A commerce ministry release today said that the new projects include an industrial cluster at Nashik in Maharashtra, a ready-made garment cluster in Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh), an auto cluster in Adityapur (Jharkhand), an industrial cluster in Amethi (Uttar Pradesh), one handloom and industrial cluster each at Chanderi and Chindwara in Madhya Pradesh, respectively.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is a Member of Parliament from Amethi while Commerce Minister Kamal Nath represents the Chhindwara constituency.

The IIUS was launched in 2003 to enhance competitiveness of industry in selected clusters by providing quality infrastructure through a public-private partnership mode.

Till now, 26 projects worth Rs 1,766.18 crore have been approved under the scheme, out of which Rs 952.10 crore will be in the form of central grant.

Out of these projects, five are nearing completion. Under the scheme, central assistance of up to 75 per cent is given for the selected projects, with a maximum ceiling Rs 50 crore.

The remaining cost is financed by the stakeholders of the respective clusters, which have to invest a minimum 15 per cent of the approved project cost.

These projects would be executed by special purpose vehicles (SPVs) involving the local industry associations.