An MLA in Karnataka has once again accused Infosys of being hungry for land. This is an issue which rears its head every once in a while but no one has a solution for it.
The rationale for giving land free or cheap to industries is that once they set up shop they will create employment in that area and also brings other benefits too. The project will not be feasible if they have to pay market prices for the land.
The main argument against this is that years later when the area has developed these companies can sell it off at exorbitant rates thus turning them into real estate companies!! Just look at the mills in Mumbai which got land for free. Today their promoters have shut shop and are selling the land for hundreds of crores. Is this fair? Certainly not.
The solution is to lease the land, not give it away. It can be a long term lease renewable at the option of the company as long as it operates there. No sub-lease rights allowed. Companies will argue that the money they put in to develop the land will go waste if they decide to shift out. To take care of that we can have a clause whereby the property will be sold and the company will get the development cost plus interest from the sale proceeds and the government keeps the rest. Fair enuff.
Another allegation by politicians is that some companies ask for more land than they think is required. Politicians say the state should not be giving land for recreational facilities et al which companies like Infosys provide to the employees. How come they forget all the facilities they have the state provide for them? Also the company may be asking for more land keeping in mind future expansion plans. What if the govt. doesn’t give more land then? It is better to take it all at once. In this case the company should reveal its future plans in advance. It can be given the extra land then with a provision that if it does not develop it as originally envisaged then it will revert back to the government.
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