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HYDERABAD, Sept. 20

AN Indian entrepreneur from Rajasthan, Mr Jhunjhunuwala got an offer from the Chinese that he could not refuse. In less than 24 hours, he was given a plot of land and assured of other facilities to set up a brick manufacturing facility off Shanghai. He was importing raw material for his facility back home in Jaipur.

In another instance, one of the members of the Chamber of Small Industries Association (COSIA), Mumbai, could set up a manufacturing unit, from design to production in just three months in China.

While the Jaipur entrepreneur took up the offer and established a unit, the COSIA member has also done quite well so far, said Mr M.R. Khambete, President of COSIA, who led a 16-member industrial (small-scale sector) group from Maharashtra to China a couple of months ago.

An entrepreneur in China can be sure to get five basic supports - good roads, water, power supply, drainage and telecommunications - in the industrial parks or special economic zones (SEZs) in addition to land and tax benefits, he said at a seminar on Chinese collaboration for the establishment of industries/business in Shanghai, organised by the National Institute of Small Industries Extension and Training (Nisiet).

In contrast, in one of the industrial areas recently developed by the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC), there has been supply for the past 15 months now. "And if an entrepreneur wants to start a new venture, despite several promised changes from the Government, the procedures, no-objection certificates and file movements take an `agonisingly' long time and are frustrating small-scale industry growth," Mr Khambete said.

While the talk about establishing SEZs and industrial townships has been going on for a long time in India, nothing much has come out of them. Whereas, China had been able to set up several SEZs and industrial parks with a large number of enterprises flourishing, he said.

Giving a comparison of the factors in China and India for industrial working as compiled by a COSIA member, Mr Khambete said while the cost of land in some of the industrial parks was Rs 55-60 per sq.m., it was Rs 2,000 in Pune. Similarly, the average salary of labour was Rs 3,000 per month and Rs 5,000 per month in comparison. There is no excise duty, profit on tax and interest rates are 2-3 per cent. While in India, the excise duty was 16 per cent, profits were fully taxed and interest rate was 13-17 per cent, the COSIA President said.

Earlier, Mr B.N. Biswal, Head of the Centre for Policy Research & Centre for Industrial Promotion & Development, said Nisiet planned to identify 15 units from the SSIs in the country interested in participating in the Shanghai Industrial Fair during November 22-27 and organise meetings for possible collaborations there.

He said despite sending out over 200 invitations to industry associations and industry units and 100 calls, the response was not encouraging for the seminar. Mr Biswal, however, hastened to add that those who came were the serious ones. He urged the participants to give a business plan for being considered for the Shanghai Fair.

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