Dubai Ports-assisted WB SEZ sees protests

Tension mounted in Nandigram in West Bengal after at least eight people died in clashes between CPI-M supporters and villagers. But in this ever-controversial state, the chief minister has announced that a new SEZ will be set up soon. CNBC-TV18 reports.

Amidst all the criticism and protests, West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee remains undeterred.

Bhattacharjee met Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, chairman of Dubai Ports World, D P World, a Dubai-based marine terminal operator, which would build a port and a multi-product SEZ in Kulpi in West Bengal.

The SEZ would be built over 2,500 acres with a total investment of around Rs2,600 crore. Bhattacharjee said that the proposed port would require an additional 700 acres of land. The company is also eyeing building a tourism hub around the tea industry of North Bengal.

The chief minister vowed full support for the SEZs planned in the state and said that there would be no slowing down of efforts. "We will help them and they'll start work as early as possible."

The chairman of Dubai Ports World says this could be a very promising project both for his company and for Bengal.

Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem said, "We came here at the invitation of the government and this could be a very interesting project. I think the state needs a deep-water barrack; it needs a port that can connect the country with South East Asia. And definitely this port, when it's finished, is going to have a lot of benefits. It's going to make shipping cargo to India cheaper; it's going to make exporting cargo out of India cheaper."