KOCHI: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan urged Keralites across the globe to invest in the state to realise the dream of ‘Nava Keralam’ and assured the government will ensure investors won’t face any bottlenecks in their perusal to set up business ventures in the state. He was speaking after inaugurating the 15-lakh square feet Lulu Cyber Tower-II at Infopark, Kochi on Saturday.
“Through policy changes, we have made approvals for investments to be issued within a set time frame for heightened investor confidence, through which we intend to negate the image of Kerala being a not so business-friendly state,” said the Chief Minister.
Vijayan added the Lulu Cyber Tower contributes to the government’s plan to expand the IT park space in Kerala from 1.3 crore sq ft to 2.3 crore sq ft and to provide 2.5 lakh direct jobs, besides increasing software exports and attracting investors to the state by 2020. “With the opening of this facility, more than 11,000 additional employment opportunities will be created here and the total capacity of Infopark will also be enhanced,” said Pinarayi.
K V Thomas MP aid the full potential of the city has not been utilised yet. We should tap into most promising areas, with IT and tourism being the most relevant ones, he said. “Lulu group’s commitment to invest in the state is commendable, with all of the projects being extremely successful, it should serve as an inspiration for others to follow suit,” said Thomas.
V Muraleedharan MP extended his support to the government’s initiatives of making Kerala an investor-friendly state. “When it comes to development, cutting across party lines, we should stand together for the holistic growth of the state,” said Muraleedharan.
“This project is our humble contribution towards making Kochi and Kerala, an IT destination which will not only create solutions & innovations but also open up huge job opportunities for skilled and qualified youth,” said, Yusufalli, CMD, Lulu Group.
Constructed with an investment of Rs 400 crore, this is the second major investment by the Lulu group in the IT sector in Kerala after lulu Cyber Tower-I, which already houses more than 20 prominent IT companies that employs more than 5,000 IT professionals.
The group is aiming to develop 5 million sq ft of IT space in the state by 2021 at a total investment of Rs 2,400 crores, including a twin-tower at SmartCity Kochi, which will be completed in the next two years.