Tamil Nadu CM seeks PM Modi to sanction Rs 1,100 crore fund for bulk drug, medical devices park

Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami today met Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi and sought financial assistance of Rs 1,100 crore for Bulk Drug Park and Medical Devices Park to be set up by the State government.

In a memorandum handed over to PM Modi during his meeting in New Delhi, he said the state government has proposed to set up a Bulk Drug Park and a Medical Devices Park near Chennai.

The Bulk Drug Park is proposed to come up at Manallur in Gummidipoondi Taluk in Tiruvallur district in an extent of 2,000 acres.

The proposed project cost for developing this project is Rs.2,153 crore. 

The Medical Devices Park is proposed to be located near Oragadam in Kancheepuram district in a 350 acre area and the proposed project cost was Rs.430 crore.

These parks will have common and advanced infrastructure facilities like CETP, Steam Systems, Warehousing and cold storage, R and D Centre, testing facilities etc.

The State Government will provide an attractive package of incentives to industries investing in these parks.

Pointing out that Tamil Nadu was one of the leading industrialized states in the country and was a top performer in sectors like automobiles, electronics and textiles, Mr Palaniswami said, however, in sectors like pharmaceuticals and medical devices, the State was yet to reach its full potential.

The Tamil Nadu Government is seeking to correct the situation by developing the Bulk Drug Park and Medical  Devices Park that would also fulfil Prime Minister's vision of Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

The Chief Minister said the state government has applied to the Department of Pharmaceuticals, Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers for financial assistance for Rs.1,000 crore for Bulk Drug Park under 'Promotion of Bulk Drug Parks Scheme' and Rs.100 crore for Medical Devices Park under 'Promotion of Medical Devices Parks Scheme' and sought Mr. Modi's intervention for early sanction of financial assistance for these projects.

Mr Palaniswami also urged Mr Modi to sanction at least two Mega Textile parks in the state. 

Pointing out the Centre's proposal to establish Mega Textile Parks across the country to achieve scale and reduced logistic costs which were imperative to compete in the global market, he said Tamil Nadu was the leading state in Textiles.

'We are keen to participate in this Mega Textile Park scheme and I have written to the Centre expressing our intent', he said, adding, the state has identified three suitable sites for setting up these Parks.

He said the State government will provide around 1,000 acres of land with requisite infrastructure such as uninterrupted power supply, water, connectivity in addition to single-window facilitation for clearances.

He urged Mr Modi to kindly consider TN's request and sanction at least two Mega Textile Parks for the State. 

He also requested the Prime Minister to fix Rs 150 as the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for per kg of Milling  Copra for the 2021 season.

Observing that Tamil Nadu was one of the major coconut growing States in the country, with an area of around 4.40 lakh hectares and annual production of 47,064 lakh nuts, Mr Palaniswami said every year, based on the recommendation of the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP), the Centre was declaring Minimum Support Price (MSP) for various agricultural crops, including Copra.

For the 2020 Copra Season, the Centre announced Rs.99.60 per kg as MSP for Milling Copra. 

The Coconut plantations in Tamil Nadu in the past three years were affected by various disasters in the form of Gaja cyclone in 2018 and Rugose Whitefly in 2019, Nivar and Burevi Cyclones in 2020.

He said to add fuel to the fire, the Covid-19 pandemic has completely devastated the Coconut industry to the core in 2020.

The harvesting and transportation costs, demand for space for storage, etc., has caused deep worry to the coconut growers.

Moreover, the Coconut Processing Industry in the State has also suffered very much due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

But, in major copra markets of Tamil Nadu, the present market price was ranging between Rs.120 to Rs.125 per kg and was expected to prevail in the same trend till the end of the season.

The coconut farmers are deeply distressed on the prevailing market rate of copra in the state.

'Hence, taking the above challenges into consideration, it is felt that the present MSP for Milling Copra of Rs.99.60 per kg will not be adequate to compensate their cost of production', he said.

As the Centre had fixed the MSPs for crops like paddy, ragi, and pulses at 150 percent of the cultivation cost,  the coconut farmers also need to be given adequate price for their produce which will enable them to overcome the increasing cost of production in the background of seasonal adversities, pest attacks and rising input costs, he said and requested Mr Modi to advise the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare as well as the CACP to consider the  revision of the MSP for Milling Copra from Rs.99.60 to at least Rs.150 per kg for the current 2021 copra season,  for safeguarding the interest of the coconut growers in the country.

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