Thursday, December 16, 2010

No decision on Honda Siel Power plot plea yet: Uttarakhand official

With a series of alleged land scams rocking Uttarakhand, the state government is finding it tough to take a final call on the request by Honda Siel Power Products Limited which is seeking execution of lease deed of the remaining 1.56 acres of land at its industrial plot in Rudrapur from where it shifted its factory to Greater Noida.

The company this year approached the government to get this piece of land in an alleged move to sell the plot.

“I am not aware of any decision on Honda Siel group,” said additional director industries S C Nautiyal.

Significantly, the company is seeking land at a time when a series of alleged land scams like the Citurgia project involving top politicians have rocked the hill state in the recent past. After being forced to withdraw incentives being given to Citurgia Biochemical Ltd, the government is taking a very cautious path and seeking legal advice on the matter.

The company has claimed it was allotted 19.48 acres land in Rudrapur area of Udham Singh Nagar district in 1992 when Uttarakhand was part of the undivided Uttar Pradesh. But due to litigation, the company could get only 17.92 acres of land from the government and remaining 1.56 acres of land was kept in abeyance pending the settlement of the court case. The company has now claimed the case has now been dismissed in the Allahabad High Court and the lease deed for the remaining piece of land should be executed.

The company in 2008 decided to shift its facility from Rudrapur to Greater Noida for economic reasons. But the move led to labour unrest in the factory following which scores of workers went on strike. On the intervention of the state labour department, the company offered voluntary retirement scheme to the factor workers. “The labour dispute in the Rudrapur factory has been settled completely,” said a Labour department official, who had closely followed the case.

Honda Siel Power, formerly known as Shriram Honda Power Equipment Limited, is a joint venture between Honda Motor Co Japan and Siel Ltd, with 67 per cent equity stakes of Honda Motor Co Japan. It is engaged in the manufacturing of portable generators, water pumping sets and engines at its manufacturing facilities in Greater Noida and Pondicherry.

BS

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