The massive Punjab National Scam involving the prominent jewelers Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi has brought the Hyderabad-based Gems Park and the Special Economic Zone for diamond and jewellery in sharp focus.

 With various central government agencies including the Directorate of Revenue Intelligences, Enforcement Directorate and Income Tax department raiding various companies of the scamsters and sealing their offices, hundreds of employees working at the Rajiv Gems Park at Maheshwaram in the city outskirts were rendered jobless.

 The five units of SEZ sealed by the authorities include Gitanjali Gems, Gilli India ltd Nakshatra World ltd, Nakshatra Brands ltd., and Bezel Jewellery, at least four of them owned by Mehul Choksi.

 About 550 workers rendered jobless by the sealing of the units also include a large number of physically challenged persons. The workers were continuously staging protest demonstration outside the Gitanjali unit demanding that the Government should provide them with alternate employment. The workers have threatened to resort to mass suicide if the government does not come to their rescue. Many of the disabled employees were provide accommodation at the unit but with its sealing they were thrown on the roads.

 With the serious allegations of irregularities in the diamond and jewelry exports to money laundering, the DRI sleuths conducted searches at the SEZ office of the Central government and scrutinized the records relating to the exports by the Gitnjali group of Mehul Choksi.

Development Commissioner of SEZ Sobhana KS Rao said that apart from the DRI, the Enforcemetn Directorate and the ministry of commerce have also sought the details of the records of Mehul Choksi's companies. Sobhana said that one of the companies of Choksi was issued a notice in 2015 for its failure in submitting the report of exports by it. However no action was taken after the company complied and filed the report.

 The scam has also brought various other irregularities in the SEZ to the fore. Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation which had entered into a sale agreement for 95 acres of land with Hyderabad Gems SEZ in 2014 at Ravirayala village in Hyderabad outskirts.

 While under the agreement the developers had committed to generate employment for at least 5000 people, eventually the five units which came up at the SEZ could provide employment to only 576 people.

 Due to the objections of the defence department a large part of the land in the SEZ could not be used by the developers. However even 18 acres of land which could be used still lies idle and the Telangana government officials were now planning to resume the land through legal process.