The Meghalaya government on Monday approved the lease period of government land from 30 to 60 years to attract large-scale investors for developmental projects in the State.
Tourism Minister Paul Lyngdoh said the decision to increase the lease period was taken at the Cabinet after it was felt that the Return on Investment (RoI) on a large project with a 30 year lease period is a concern.
“Currently, the State provides for 30 years of lease on government land. But in view of the need and the increasing number of proposals for large scale investments and projects, we deemed that this duration is insufficient to attract investors, who would like a reasonable return in their investment,” he said.
Citing an example of the Hotel Orchid Polo, which is a joint venture project, the proposed investment is about Rs 300 crore, Lyngdoh said, “investors would naturally be apprehensive that their RoI may not materialise in a 30 year period.”
“We needed to have a rationale lease period, which would encourage big investors to come forward and participate and with that in mind, we have extended the window to make it feasible for large scale projects, to have from 30 years to a period of 60 years,” he stated.
Lyngdoh said the department of Revenue and Disaster Management came with the proposal of doubling the lease period and the Cabinet approved the proposal.
He further informed that at the end of the lease period of 60 years, the lease would be extended by another 30 years.
Meanwhile Lyngdoh, who also holds the Social Welfare portfolio, said the state government would establish 15-20 new rehabilitation centres by 2025 for drug users.
He said the government currently is funding nine centres owned and run by private institutions.
Acknowledging that there is a shortage of government-run centres in the state, Lyngdoh said the government is taking into consideration concerns raised from several quarters. “Due to shortage of such rehabilitation centres many families are forced to send their loved ones to centres outside the state,” he said.
Recently two drug users – Rickelson Jyrwa and Meban Syndor – from Meghalaya died under mysterious circumstances in two rehabilitation centres in Assam.
One such case was also reported earlier this year revolving around another centre in Assam.
The Social Welfare minister said the Meghalaya government has sought a report on the recent deaths from the Assam government.
“We have also written to the Assam government and the Deputy Commissioner of East Khasi Hills has also sought a report from her Assam counterpart, Lyngdoh infromed.
