A Special Economic Zone (SEZ) is a region with more relaxed economic regulation than the country as a whole. India has specific legislation governing its SEZs.
India was among the first countries in Asia to recognise the effectiveness of the Export Processing Zone (EPZ) model in promoting exports. Asia's first EPZ was established in Kandla in 1965. To overcome various shortcomings such as the multiplicity of controls and clearances, absence of world-class infrastructure, and an unstable fiscal regime, and with the aim of attracting larger foreign investments, the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) Policy was announced in April 2000.
In December 2022, the Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha, informed that Special Economic Zones exported software worth ₹5.3 lakh crore in 2021–22.
State-wise distribution
+State-wise distribution of SEZs (as on 31 December 2020) State/Union Territory Approved Notified Operational Andhra Pradesh 322720 Chandigarh 222 Chhattisgarh 211 Delhi 200 Goa 730 Gujarat 282420 Haryana 25227 Jharkhand 220 Karnataka 635234 Kerala 292519 Madhya Pradesh 1275 Maharashtra 514537 Manipur 110 Nagaland 220 Odisha 755 Puducherry 100 Punjab 533 Rajasthan 543 Tamil Nadu 565348 Telangana 635634 Tripura 110 Uttar Pradesh 242114West Bengal757 Total 425 359 265
List of State-wise Exporting SEZs A list of functional Special Economic Zones in India has been published.