NEW DELHI, December 25: The government has approved eight projects worth Rs 23.60 crore under the new `crucial balancing investment scheme,' which aims at removing impediments in export promotion.

Launched in 1996-97, the scheme is part of the drive to boost exports and covers investment, which is in the nature of exigencies or emergencies and which cannot be foreseen as part of the annual plan scheme proposals.

Broadly, the scheme covers investment required for quicker and strategic removal of bottlenecks and for general export facilitation.

It will consider providing financial support to proposals involving removal of bottlenecks at ports, roads, airports, export centres etc.

Commerce ministry sources say that the eight approved projects are located in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya and West Bengal.

This is against six projects with a contribution of Rs 21.25 crore cleared earlier and ten proposals with funds of Rs. 23.21 crore approved in 1997-98.

Sources further said that a sum of Rs 13.93 crore has been approved for the improvement power projects in UP and Meghalaya and Rs two crore for development of rail transport at Petrapole in West Bengal.

Projects, with an outlay of Rs 4.75 crore, have been approved for general infrastruture development at three centres in Karnataka, Kerala and West Bengal.

In the tele-communication sector, Rs 10 lakh has been approved for the Visakhapatnam export processing zone.

The scheme is operated by an eight-member committee constituted under the chairmanship of the commerce secretary.

Other members are representatives of the planning commission, ministries of surface transport and finance, additional secretaries in the ministry of commerce and the economic adviser and director (infrastructure).

The scheme was constituted following an in-principle approval from the Cabinet Committee on Trade and Development to a proposal to provide plan support for export promotion.

It was based on advice tendered by the commerce ministry to the planning commission to undertake export promotion activities.

As per the guidelines notified, it is indicated that balancing of investment may relate to production infrastructure in export conclaves, zones and export promotion areas; in the multi-modal transportation, that is, inland container depots, container freight stations, air cargo complex, in sea ports and airports, improvement of feeder roads to ports, decongestion and warehousing and tannery effluent treatment units.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.