Chief Secretary chairs 7th Board of Directors Meeting of SIDCO, Reviews Industrial Development and Revenue Initiatives

Excelsior Correspondent

LEH, Aug 7: Chief Secretary, UT Ladakh, Ashish Kundra, chaired the 7th meeting of the Board of Directors of SIDCO Ladakh to review the functioning of the corporation, industrial development initiatives, transport operations, revenue generation and various proposals placed before the Board.

At the outset, Managing Director, SIDCO, Himanshu Gupta, gave a detailed presentation on the functioning of SIDCO, composition of the Board of Directors, staffing position, equity shareholding, SIDCO transport and agenda items including the proposed One-Time Settlement (OTS) Scheme for industrial plot/unit holders, corpus grant-in-aid, deployment and utilisation of SIDCO vehicles, opening of four new petrol pumps with wayside amenities and EV charging facilities at Zanskar, Nyoma, Kargil and Leh, proposed SIDCO SFC/NBFC, unified recruitment rules, audited balance sheet for 2024-25, construction of Government buildings on deposit-work basis, operation and maintenance of defunct Government buildings and district land allotment matters.

Reviewing the proposals, the Chief Secretary sought a comprehensive assessment of all industrial estates, including land availability, infrastructure, utilisation, occupancy and revenue potential. He directed SIDCO to prepare location-specific action plans with clear estimates, expenditure details, timelines and measurable outcomes. He also stressed the need to identify sustainable revenue-generation opportunities beyond conventional activities and sought details of investment, location and projected revenue from the proposed petrol pumps.

The meeting was attended by Managing Director, SIDCO, Himanshu Gupta; Secretary, PWD, Baseer-ul-Haq Choudhary; Finance Secretary, Tsewang Tharchin, Managing Director, Sonam Norbu; Executive Director, Tashi Mangyal; Executive Engineer and other senior officers of SIDCO and concerned departments.