Joshi said the whole exercise was aimed at creating more jobs in the small scale sectors at a time when recession was being felt throughout the country. ``It was necessary to regularise the unauthorised industrial units in order to safeguard the interest of the labour employed there,'' the Chief Minister said.

The new industries allowed to operate include industrial springs, fabrication, electric motors, utensil manufacturing, steel metal press, special purpose machinery, moulding of rubber parts, manufacturing of automobile parts and engineering works.

However, the industrial units in these areas wouldhave to comply with certain conditions laid down by the government. First an industrial unit would have to obtain a certificate from the State Pollution Control Board certifying non-hazardous nature of the industry. Besides, the pollution control board will have to ensure that the production process does not cause any chemical pollution.

Secondly, the Chief Minister said, such units would be permitted only within the boundaries of the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation or a notified co-operative industrial society. The government would not permit the industries to be located in predominantly residential areas.

The polluting industries would also be required to install pollution control machinery wherever necessary, the Chief Minister pointed out.

About the regularisation of unauthorised industrial units, Joshi said that only those units which came into existence after May 4, 1993 would be considered for regularisation on payment of penalty.

The government decision, however, raised severalquestions about the status of the existing industrial units in Bhayander. This suburb has many unauthorised small scale units scattered across the municipal area. The regularisation process may create problems since it requires the units to be located in non-industrial areas. Besides, Bhayander does not have an MIDC complex or any co-operative industrial society to accommodate these units.

Regularisation of the units in this part of the suburb would violate one of the conditions laid down by the government.