Deadlock remains over stalled Infosys project in Bengal

Kolkata: Hinting that there was no immediate breaking of the deadlock over its stalled project in West Bengal, IT bellwether Infosys has said it is awaiting the response of the Mamata Benerjee government on according SEZ status or attributing similar benefits to its proposed Rajarhat project.

The project has failed to take off because the Trinamool Congress government has refused to grant special economic zone (SEZ) status to it.

"We need the SEZ status and that is what we told the state government. They (government) then said that they would figure out how there may be other benefits that can be provided," Infosys co-chairman S Gopalakrishnan told media persons on the sidelines of PanIIT here Saturday.

Infosys had paid in full Rs 75 crore for 50 acres of land at the satellite township of Rajarhat on the eastern fringes of the state capital.

"We are still waiting (for response from the government)," Gopalakrishnan averred.

Infosys had paid in full Rs 75 crore for 50 acres of land at the satellite township of Rajarhat on the eastern fringes of the state capital.

State IT minister Partha Chatterjee had met the top-brass of the software major at their Bangalore headquarters to resolve the deadlock in September this year.

Chatterjee then said the meet had been successful and the two parties would jointly try to find a solution to the problem.

Gopalakrishnan, however, said the company had no meeting with the government after September.

Reiterating that a SEZ status was necessary for the proposed campus in West Bengal, he said: "We need SEZ or similar facilities, because that is what we get in other places."

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