Former Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s elevation as the Prime Minister has come as a boon for his home State as after an important permission to put sluice gates on Narmada Dam in June, the Modi Government gave clearances to two more projects — the cold storage for perishable goods at Ahmedabad airport as well as 8,481 hectares Special Economic Zone (SEZ) near Mundra in Kutch district. The cold storage for perishable goods was waiting for Airport Authority of India’s clearance for the last three years at Sardar Patel International Airport. Despite repeated representations from not only the Gujarat Government but also various stakeholders including traders and exporters, the project was delaying due to indecisiveness of the previous Government. Interestingly, the construction work of the cold storage was completed and it was ready for use since last three years but was waiting for some inexplicable reasons to start functioning. The four-chambered 30 tonnes capacity Centre for Perishable Cargo has been set up by the state-owned Gujarat Agro-Industries Corporation (GAIC) where the perishable goods like fruits and vegetables could be stored in minus eight to 22 degree centigrade temperature. The AAI has no stake in the cold storage except having given the land on lease to the GAIC which would also be responsible for its maintenance and operations and yet was holding back permission to open the cold storage losing the rent it was supposed to earn from the GAIC for the lease of the land as per its agreement with the state-owned corporation. The utilisation of the cold storage would now help the farmers from Gujarat to export fruits and vegetables, particularly high export-demand Kesar mangoes, directly from the Ahmedabad airport. So far they had to send their produces through road transport incurring extra expenditure to Mumbai for export from there. The opening of the cold storage would not only benefit the farmers in the State in reducing their export costs but also the Gujarat Government as the export income earned by the Maharashtra Government so far would now amass to the State Government. Meanwhile, Union Ministry for Environment and Forest has given environment and Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearance to Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone. The SEZ is spread across 8,881 hectares. The clearance will now allow APSEZ, which operates India’s only port-based SEZ, to set up a mega desalination plant, an effluent treatment plant and intake of sea water, all of which constitute primary infrastructure to be provided for companies setting up business units in the special economic zone.