The Maharashtra government has given Baba Ramdev's Patanjali Yogpeeth 653 acres of land to set up four industrial units in Vidarbha region of east Maharashtra, including in the backward district of Gadchiroli. Announcing the deal,
Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari said that these units will come up in Multi-modal International Cargo Hub and Airport at Nagpur (Mihan), Amravati and Katol, besides in Gadchiroli.
"Maharashtra government has decided to provide 347 acres of land in Mihan to Patanjali Yogpeeth for setting up a food processing unit," he said. "The land will be handed over within a month and the government will also provide the required infrastructure there. Land will also be provided in Amravati for a food park."
The Maharashtra government signed the MoU with Patanjali Group last Friday, and Ramdev expects a turnover of around Rs 240 crore from the sale of forest produce which would benefit the local tribals, reportedBusiness Today. Patanjali will invest Rs 2,000 crore in this venture.
While 108 acres of this land will be in the special economic zone (SEZ), around 239 acres will be outside it, said Gadkari, who represents Nagpur Lok Sabha seat. He claimed that this would general employment for over 10,000 locals.
Meanwhile, 200 acres of land will be given to Patanjali in Katol MIDC (Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation) area, about 40 kilometres from Nagpur, for an orange processing unit.
"Of the 300 or so herbs, 200 can be grown in Gadchiroli and Chandrapur districts alone. Patanjali will set up a unit to manufacture herbal medicines in Gadchiroli," he said.
Patanjali's Managing Director Acharya Balkrishna said the company will help the farmers get right value for their harvest. Balkrishna added that both Gadkari and chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan have "showed a positive reaction and have agreed to help us". He claimed that Patanjali has focussed on Vidarbha because farmers in the region are facing a major agrarian crisis.
Gadkari said the Patanjali will also train tribals of Gadchiroli and Chandrapur districts to grow these herbs. He said Patanjali Yogpeeth is also mulling establishing a milk unit in the region, but it is in conceptual stage.
(with agency inputs)
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