Says Rahul Kacker, president, GCCI, "Entrepreneurs have little scope to grow." Which is hardly a good portent, as most of the industry in the district are in the small and medium sector. With real estate prices going skywards, the entrepreneur is often forced to shelve his expansion plans.

Conversion of agricultural land into industrial one is very expensive, Rs 9-10 lakh per acre, and it takes a long time, about one year. Further, government policies are not clear, says Kacker. "There are numerous problems regarding the change of land use. If I want tochange my line of business because I find another one more lucrative or my line has not remained profitable, I have to get a number of approvals. There can be objections if I start manufacturing something which involves, say, a polluting process. But in normal circumstances, there should be no hassles," he says.

Local industrialists feel that officials are irritatingly meddlesome, and that is how they make moolah. "The bureaucrats feel that we are the mythical kamdhenu cow that can be milked as much as one likes to. Every official wants his pound of flesh," says Col R P Dhawan, president, Udyog Vihar Industries Association (UVIA), Gurgaon.

Udyog Vihar is located on National Highway 8 and is one of the most promising industrial estates of Haryana. It has over 1,700 units which are mainly in the SME sector. Haryana State Industrial Development Corporation (HSIDC) was given the responsibility of developing the complex along with all the facilities like roads, sewerage, street lighting, post offices and firestations.

The authorities have not fared well in providing facilities. Roads are full of potholes and badly need repairs in most places. Street lighting is hardly satisfactory. Heaps of garbage are found everywhere, some of which have blocked roads. But the biggest problem is the pathetic sewerage system. Says Devender Singh, deputy commissioner, Gurgaon, "Udyog Vihar sewers are being connected with the HUDA master sewer. The work on sewage treatment plants (STPs) is also on."

Bad roads, poor sewerage, and other such problems are because of the lack of pro-active, perspective planning on the part of the authorities. Laments Dhawan, "We paid for fully developed industrial area. What the area we got is neither developed nor industrial."

Dhawan also has problems with the attitude of officials. He says "The officials' mindset is still colonial. The same condescending attitude, `We allowed you to set up industry. You have prospered because of us. Therefore, you shall always look up to us for direction.' Butthe fact is that we have prospered in spite of, and not because of, the officialdom."

Dhawan and his cronies are extremely wary of -- what they feel are -- the officious officials of HSIDC. "Why can't they just leave us alone?" asks S S Verma, vice-president, UVIA. "Why do they harass us all the time? It's my business, my baby. I'll run it, not you."

The Financial Express carried the dispute between HSIDC and the UVIA in its May 21 issue. In the article, the UVIA had charged HSIDC for perpetrating "the worst form of State terrorism." HSIDC, on its part, had retaliated by calling the UVIA a "bunch of property agents" masquerading as "genuine entrepreneurs".

There are many other issues that need to be attended to in all earnestness. One is the lack of any arrangement for the lodging of workers. "So far, there are no slums in Gurgaon," says Kacker. "But if no housing arrangements are made, shanty settlements may mushroom" in the foreseeable future. Dhawan agrees: "We have informed the government ofthis issue. We are willing to contribute our share."

Another problem is that of the scarcity of skilled labour. "Industry needs people who can work on computerised machines. An institute imparting such training can be set up. But ITIs are useless, out of sync with the requirements of the industry. They are still training people to use lathe machines, work presses, etc. They have ancient equipment. We need better trained people," says Kacker.

Entrepreneurs are confident that if given proper facilities, they can can do wonders.