HC appreciates Industrial Policy for providing land to unemployed

Excelsior Correspondent

Srinagar, June 5: High Court has dismissed the plea of an entrepreneur seeking additional land for running his business unit and appreciated the steps taken by the Government to frame policy to tackle the unemployment in J&K and providing land for the entrepreneurs in a rational manner.
Justice Sanjeev Kumar rejected the plea of a petitioner-entrepreneur Abdul Aziz Ganai seeking allotment of additional land without applying in tune with the allotment policy for promoting his existing business unit ‘M/S Mehboob Enterprises’ in district Budgam provided to him by the State Industrial Development Corporation Ltd (SIDCO) on the ground that the authorities have rightly turned down his request for allotment of additional land keeping in view of New Industrial Policy in vogue.
“The land in the industrial estate which is meant to be allotted to the entrepreneurs cannot be restricted only to a chosen few. There is rampant unemployment in the UT of J&K and many young entrepreneurs are waiting to establish their business, provided they get the suitable land allotted to them in the notified industrial estates in the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir”, Justice Kumar recorded in the judgment.
Court while upholding the decision of the authorities to provide further land to the petitioner-entrepreneur said, the respondents have very correctly created online portal, so that all eligible and intending entrepreneurs are in a position to apply for allotment of land and the same is allotted in a rational manner, having regard to the object of the Industrial Policy framed by the Government.
Court said the petitioner did not raise any eyebrow against the allotment of earlier 6-marlas of land in lieu of the earlier allotment of 1-kanal and it is only when he failed to repay the loan to the Department, he raked up the controversy and claimed complete 1-kanal of land for establishment of his unit.
“The matter remained under consideration before the respondents and was placed before the Committee for examination. Ultimately, the respondents found that the petitioner had already established his unit on 6-marlas of land and having regard to the nature of machinery employed and the activities carried, 6-marlas of land was sufficient”, read the judgment.
The respondents court added, also found that Government of Jammu & Kashmir had come up with fresh industrial policy and had created online portal for the benefit of the intending entrepreneurs who were seeking allotment of land in various industrial estates of the UT of Jammu and Kashmir and petitioner was thus intimated that his request for allotment of further 14-marlas of land cannot be acceded to, though he can, if eligible, apply online in terms of the Industrial Policy/Allotment Policy in vogue.