ITC, HUL to squeeze expansion in U'khand

Top FMCG companies ITC and HUL may be forced to cut down their expansion plans in Uttarakhand substantially due to scarcity of land. HUL had applied to the State Infrastructure and Industrial Development Corporation of Uttarakhand Ltd (Sidcul) for 50 acres in Haridwar. But the company got only 15 acres under the new allotment policy. The company had proposed to invest Rs 510 crore at the Haridwar industrial estate where it has already established a unit in 2004. “HUL is likely to cut down its expansion plans in Haridwar keeping in view the area of the land allotted,” an official said. Similarly, ITC wanted 30 acres in Haridwar but was given only 9 acres. ITC had also proposed an investment of Rs 260 crore initially. After failing to get the desired area, ITC would also shrink its expansion plans, the official said. The Sidcul, a state government enterprise, received nearly 105 proposals for different industrial areas of the state in July for the vacant plots. But a heavy rush was witnessed at Haridwar industrial estate where the land was far less as compared to other industrial estates like Pantnagar. In order to accommodate maximum industries, the government was forced to cut the size of plots despite a heavy demand from various companies. The official informed that that the government also could not fulfill the requirement of other top companies like Sterlite and Control and Switchgear Ltd also. But the situation was not that bad in Pantnagar industrial estates where the expansion plans of companies like Tata Motors, Delta India and Hindustan Zinc have not been affected. The lion’s share went to Tata Motors, which walked away with 45 acres of extra land for manufacturing Nano car.