New legislation to replace Special Economic Zones Act
07 Feb 2022
“The Special Economic Zones Act will be replaced with a new legislation that will enable states to become partners in Development of Enterprise and Service Hubs”, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman said while presenting the Union Budget for 2022-23, in Parliament today. This, she said, would cover all large existing and new industrial enclaves to optimally utilise available infrastructure and enhance competitiveness of exports.
She also proposed various initiatives to make GIFT City more attractive.
The finance minister proposed that world-class foreign universities and institutions would be allowed in the GIFT City to offer courses in financial anagement, FinTech, science, technology, engineering and mathematics free from domestic regulations, except those by IFSCA to facilitate availability of high-end human resources for financial services and technology.
Sitharaman also proposed an International Arbitration Centre, which would be set up in the GIFT City for timely settlement of disputes under international jurisprudence. Further, she said that services for global capital for sustainable and climate finance in the country would be facilitated in the GIFT City.