Increase in LPA area will limit growth of industrial sectors, say trade bodies

In the draft Madurai Master Plan 2041, the Local Planning Authority land has been extended from 148 square km to about 1,000 square km; due to this most lands under industrial use will be converted to either commercial or residential areas

As the Directorate of Town and Country Planning released the draft of the Madurai Master Plan 2041 recently at the district Collector’s office in Madurai, trade bodies have questioned the rationale behind categorising the existing industrial areas under Local Planning Authority (LPA).

As the LPA land has been extended from 148 sq. km. to about 1,000 square.km in the latest draft master plan, most of the lands under industrial use would be converted to either commercial or residential areas, which in turn would create a problem to the industries located in those areas, said N. Jegadeesan, president Tamil Nadu Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

“On one side the LPA has been expanded till Karungalakudi and on the other side it has been increased till areas near Nagamalai Pudukkotai, thus limiting the scope for industries in those areas, at a time when the development of industrial sectors in the area is under question,” he added.

Bringing most of the areas under LPA would mandate the change of land classification from agricultural land to industrial land which is usually a

Increasing LPA will mandate change of land classification from agricultural to industrial use which is a laborious task

very laborious task, he commented. Lands abutting roads whether near city or away from city should be declared as industrial area, as such areas would not be used for residential purpose, Mr. Jegadeesan noted.

“As many of the areas are newly brought under LPA, the respective industries owners should check whether their areas are under LPA, if yes, they should appeal to the committee to get it removed,” he added.

At a time when the demands for increasing the industrial areas from about 3% to 15% is being raised, the draft master plan has instead increased the industrial area only to 4.47%, said, RM. Lakshminarayanan, president, Madurai District Tiny and SmallScale Industries Association (MADITSSIA).

While the land at Sakkimanagalam which was earmarked for SIDCO establishment has been facing a problem in changing the land classification from agricultural to industrial land, the draft master plan furthers the fear in the industrialists who have been planning to establish their businesses, he added.

“To avoid such complications, we simply demand the government to provide us land exclusive for industrial developments which we are ready to develop into a private industrial estate. This will enable industries functioning inside the city to be moved to the exclusive estate and avoid opposition from residential areas situated nearby,” he said.

“Moreover, the government should consider the ample labour resource available in the district which could be one of the major reasons an industry is easily established and flourishes,” said Mr. Lakshminarayanan.