Thiruvanthapuram: A 50-year-old entrepreneur who committed suicide at his office at Veli industrial estate on Thursday left a note blaming the district industries officials for red-tapism. The deceased identified as E.P. Suresh of Mundathikodu, Edava, Thrissur, was running the 'Metacare aluminium fabrication unit' and residing near Mangalathukonam Siva temple, Akkulam. He had returned from a Gulf country in 2010 and started the unit in a 10-cent plot at Veli with his brother Shaji Kumar. It had cost Rs 25,000 to hold a cent of land at the estate at that time.
Recently, the industries department had raised the ownership charge on the land as some entrepreneurs started subletting the land. At the renewed rate, the entrepreneur had to pay Rs 63 lakh to maintain the unit. Last year, Suresh decided to expand the unit by roping in more investors and rechristened the firm as 'Metacare engineers and powder coating ltd.' Suresh was finding it difficult to get the company registered.
On Thursday at 2 p.m., he called a meeting of the investors. When they arrived, they found him hanging from the ceiling of his office. He leaves behind his wife Sheena and son S. Sanjay. The body was handed over to his relatives after autopsy. The local police have started a probe into the financial liabilities of the deceased. The industries department also ordered a high- level probe after the owners of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises staged a protest in front of the District Industries Centre on Friday afternoon.
Delay to revise fair value has man taking fatal step
Industries and Commerce director K. Biju said that the suicide of E.P. Suresh, an entrepreneur in Veli Industrial Estate, was unfortunate as the government was seriously considering reviewing the lease premium of Veli area. "I have come to understand that the exorbitant lease premium in Veli area was one of the reasons Suresh committed suicide," Mr Biju said. "The fact is, the government was already seized of the matter. I myself had held discussions with stakeholders in the area, and had found their concerns to be valid. We were in fact seriously considering the revision of rates in areas like Veli where the fair value was high," he added.
Under the Lease Policy and Lease Rules of Land that was brought out in 2013, entrepreneurs who had invested in industrial plots should pay a lease premium based on the fair value of land. "The fair value for Veli was definitely high, when compared to plots in say Thrissur or Palakkad. Suresh, I understand, was deeply concerned that he will have to pay a huge premium," Mr Biju said.
Prior to 2013, when a hire-purchase system was in place, entrepreneurs had only to pay nominal sum, and then an annual interest of six per cent. "But it was found that this system was taken advantage of by investors who converted the land for real estate purposes. This was why the government decided to switch to the 'lease premium' method," the director said.
It is also felt that the Investment Promotion and Facilitation Bill, 2018, which was passed on April 3, should have given Suresh a ray of hope. The new bill has ruled out the rejection of an application for the start of a medium or small scale unit. The time to grant sanctions has also been shortened. The Kerala Panchayati Raj Act, and the Municipality Act have been amended in such a manner that red-tapism was rooted out. The bill, which amended seven major acts, states that revenue officials should verify the application and supporting documents on the spot itself. Further, the permission has to be granted within 30 days; earlier it was 60 days. Now permission cannot be refused, unlike earlier. It has to be granted either absolutely or subject to conditions, after doing the mandatory checks to assess whether the proposed unit could be harmful to the environment or people in the area.
