Royal Palms plans jewellery SEZ

Mumbai-based real estate developer, Royal Palms, is developing Mumbai's first Gem & Jewellery Special Economic Zones on a private land at an expenditure of Rs 400 crore (Rs 4 billion). The park will be designed by Singapore-based architects, MA Architects.

The SEZ at Royal Palms shall be spread over 25 acres and shall have 500 diamond processing units and likely to be completed in two phases.

In the first phase, 12.5 lakh sq ft (1.25 million) is scheduled to be developed at an investment of Rs 200 crore (Rs 2 billion) and would be completed March 2009. The remaining 12.5 lakh square feet area is scheduled to be completed by December 2010 at an expenditure of Rs 200 crore.

"This is purely being developed on private land and any member of Gems & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) can open a unit in it on private basis," said Sanjay Kothari, chairman, GJEPC.

This SEZ has nothing to do with our demand for the land allocation with similar status at Dahisar, a Western Suburb in Mumbai, Kothari added.

The entire land of 25 acres shall have 100 per cent landscape podium for pedestrians only. However, parking for 2,500 cars has been proposed below the podium to the building lobbies.

Additionally, the SEZ would also facilitate lush green landscape, walk-ways, jogging tracks, food courts, cafeteria, water-fall, etc.

Surprisingly, the Royal Palms is planning to develop, operate and maintain this SEZ on private basis and propose to offer premises only on lease basis and not on outright sale, according to its joint managing director, Dilawar Nensey.

The developer also offers direct linkages with its other existing and proposed facilities including 5 star hotels (4,000 rooms capacity by 2008), recreational clubs and facilities, excellent road connectivity, a school, hospital, mall, functional and occupied residential, commercial and township infrastructure among others.

The maiden gems and jewellery SEZ in Mumbai, is set to revolutionise the Rs 70,000 crore (Rs 700 billion) Indian diamond cutting and processing sector.

Nensey hopes that the cutting and processing units from neighbouring states like Gujarat would find business dealings from Mumbai economical as the shipment from Mumbai and Nhava Sheva ports would save the transportation costs. Mumbai handles approximately 90 per cent of India's $17 billion gems exports.

The government of India has been constantly revising policy to promote gems and jewellery sector on global scale and thereby, making India a hub in the world.

Still, the diamond polishers have been at a loss because of rupee appreciation, high local taxes and transportation costs.

This SEZ would, however, scrap the threat of business losses to the countries like Saudi Arabia (Dubai) and China, Nensey said.