New government should adopt industrial estates: SICCI

Chennai: Addressing the problem of underdeveloped industrial estates, that is driving away employee force from the micro, small and medium scale industries, will be the biggest challenge for the new government assuming power after May 16 polls in Tamil Nadu, according to the Southern India Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

At a CEOs meet on providing a new perspective for industrial development of Tamil Nadu, Sicci representatives highlighted the ‘orphaning’ of industrial estates as a crisis situation. “There are no residential complexes, medical facilities available nearby which is making it very difficult for workers to stay. This is one of the reasons why MSME sector is losing employees to Multi National

Companies,” said K. Balasubramanian, chairman of Sicci ‘s MSME committee.
“Estates should not be about marketing industrial plots. There are estates with no substations. So, industrialists are spending a lot individually to get power. Townships are needed. Above all, the new government should provide effluent treatment plants,” said Mohan, vice president of TANSTIA.

If neglected estates were one part of the issue, quality of power was another bemoaning aspect. According to J. Sridhar, representing the auto components industry body, the power quality in Tamil Nadu has not improved at all in the last two decades. “65 per cent of the damage and break down encountered by industries in the aftermath of December 2015 floods was due to low power quality,” he said.

For the leather industry, making argument for the government to provide pipe line to emit treated effluents in the sea, Habib Hussain, chairman of Sicci ‘s leather sector skill council said that 40 per cent of leather output would increase if this were to happen.