GIDC to develop chemical, engineering zones

In a bid to create an ecosystem of both large and small companies in the chemical and engineering industries, Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) is developing specific zones for small and medium enterprises in these two sectors.

At its 4,000-hectare industrial estate near the Dahej Special Economic Zone, GIDC has reserved around 1,000 hectares for SMEs in the chemical and engineering industries.

"GIDC will give preference to those SMEs from chemical and engineering sectors which have forward and backward linkages with large enterprises already present in the estate in Dahej.

The idea is to create an environment where hardly anything gets wasted, and everything gets utilised within the industrial fraternity at Dahej," said Arvind Agrawal, chief executive officer and managing director of GIDC, on the sidelines of a seminar on eco-industrial parks organised by FICCI in Ahmedabad.

According to Agrawal, GIDC intends to make the zone self-sufficient, with raw materials and waste products being utilised by both SMEs and large units to create other products and by-products.

While SMEs in the chemical zone will be allotted 350-400 hectares, engineering units will get about 600-650 hectares.

The GIDC industrial estate already boasts of such companies as Indian Petrochemicals Corporation Limited, Adani Power and Meghmani Organics, among others.

"Instead of dumping the waste, it should add value to someone else's product. Hence, SMEs that can either provide raw material to large units through their waste, or vice versa, will be encouraged to set up units in this zone," Agrawal added.

According to sources privy to the development, GIDC is in possession of the land at Dahej and has also started receiving applications from units.

Earlier, the Gujarat government had asked state-run companies like Gujarat State Fertiliser Corporation, Gujarat Alkalis and Chemicals Limited and Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertiliser Corporation to work with GIDC for value-addition in the chemical sector.

The idea was to promote the establishment of SMEs, especially chemicals units, in areas near the plants of these three companies, so that small units could use their chemical products and by-products.

Also, many SMEs produce raw materials which are used by big chemical companies. Gujarat is a hub of the chemical industry.