Resistance Movement against SEZs: Case Studies of Kakinada SEZ and Brandix SEZ in Andhra Pradesh_We in the Zone (2)

The chapter on SEZs in Indiaby Surendra Pratap focuses on two SEZs in Andhra Pradesh, the Kakinada SEZ of East Godavari District and the Brandix India Apparel City SEZ of Vishakhpattanam District. Kakinada SEZ is situated in the East Godavari District on the northeast coast of Andhra Pradesh. It is bordered on the north by Visakhapatnam District and the State of Orissa, on the east and south by the Bay of Bengaland on the west by Khammam and West Godavari Districts. East Godavari District is situated in the Krishna-Godavari Agro Climatic Zone. It is one of the most productive agricultural districts of Andhra Pradesh, contributing about 10 percent of the total food production of the state.

This chapter begins with a description of the process of transformation of these industrial zones into SEZs.  Indiawas in fact the first country in the Asia Pacific region to set up export processing zones (EPZs) in 1965. The chapter reviews the three periods of the development of the zone in India.  In 1980, when the strategy of the zone was considered unsuccessful, the government set up the Tondon Committee to review the policies concerning the zone. Predictably, the committee called for further liberalization by delegating more power to the zone authority and the provision of industry incentives. Along with a reorientation toward export-led industries, the EPZ attained its strategic importance in 1990s. The second phase was between 1992-1994, when several policies were passed enlarging the scope and coverage of EPZs and export operating units (EOUs). The Foreign Trade Policy (Exim Policy) (1997-2002) further provided for the conversion of all FTZs and EPZs into special economic zones (SEZs) and also for the establishment of new SEZs. The seven zones at Santacruz, Kandla, Surat, Cochin, Visakhapatnam, Chennai, Noida and Falta all were converted into special economic zones by 2003.  Later, another 19 SEZs were established in different parts of India.