KOCHI: The economic hub of Kochi has been given prime focus in the maiden budget of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. Many new projects have been mooted and fund to complete the exiting ones have been announced in the budget presented by Finance Minister Thomas Isaac on Friday.
The budget focused on developing basic infrastructure facilities like roads and bridges to faster completion of mega projects such as Smart City and Kochi Metro.
Isaac said money would not be an issue for Kochi Metro project. An amount of Rs 2536 cr was earmarked for major infrastructure development projects that includes Kochi Metro and Mobility Hub.
Focus on institutions
Institutions that boast of rich legacies have been accorded due allocation. University College which is celebrating its 150th anniversary and Maharajas College in Ernakulam will be declared digital colleges. These educational institutions, along with three others in the state, will be upgraded into Centre of Excellence by spending a total of Rs 150 cr investment worth Rs 40 crore each has been planned to make cultural centres in these cities. The Sahodaran Ayyappan Centre in Ernakulam will act as a hub for artist to engage and perform. Some of the organisations and libraries that receives allocation from budget are Federation of Film Societies of India, Gandhi Museum and library and PN Panicker Foundation.
Kathakali Centre at Tripunithura, Centre for Socio Economic and Environmental Studies and Public Nexus Conference in Kochi also benefited from the budget in terms of grants.
Permanent venue for IFFK
An amount of Rs 50 crore has been allocated for setting up a permanent venue for International Film Festival of Kerala (IFFK). It has been an instant hit since Thiruvananthapuram city became the permanent venue for the festival. The 20th edition of IFFK held last year drew 14,000 delegates. There has been a constant demand to have a permanent venue instead of screening films in multiple screens. Previous government said that it had identified 3 locations including at Kowdiyar and Kinfra Park.