IT Minister's land price recommendation causes half a crore loss to the state's treasury
- IT Minister Nara Lokesh’s recommends reduction in the land rates in spite of APIIC, Finance Department and CS’s opposition
- State treasury lost half crore because of Cabinet’s decision
- An IT Company gained Rs 10 crores land at a cheap price
FollowAccording to a Sakshi news report, two acres of land in Visakhapatnam’s Madhuravada region was allotted to Innominds Software Private Limited by APIIC (Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation) on April 30, 2015, at the cost of Rs 5,600 per square meter. The company was to pay Rs 4,53,26,400 as EMD (Earnest Money Deposit) but the company sought APIIC to decrease land rate.
APIIC doesn’t have the authority to change the rate after land rate has been fixed and APIIC cancelled the allotment on September 8, 2015. It allotted the same land to Fab Lab at the same rate but even Fab Lab didn’t start the IT company.
Innominds again approached APIIC for the same two acres of land on May 24, 2016 and APIIC once again allotted the land at the rate of Rs 6,280 per square meter on July 26, 2016 on the condition to immediately start the company with 30 employees.
Innominds requested APIIC to decide on the previous rate of Rs 4,53,26,400 instead of the present rate of Rs 5,08,30,320. APIIC said it was impossible to reduce the rate and once again cancelled the allotment on February 20, 2017.
Innominds representatives approached IT Minister Nara Lokesh to reduce the rate and Lokesh requested APIIC to reduce the rate for which it replied that the authority only lies with the Cabinet. When the request reached Chief Secretary of AP, he also remarked that it is against the norms and once fixed rate cannot be changed.
But in the recent Cabinet meeting, the land rate was reduced incurring a loss of Rs 55,03,920 to the treasury and a gain to the company. The land in this region is sold at Rs 10 crores per acre in the open market.
