New integrated township planned at Thiruvananthapuram's Technopark with Centre’s support

Neopolis is the first component of the proposed Outer Area Growth Corridor project

The release of the brochure for the Outer Area Growth Corridor by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the presence of CRDP special officer Ajitkumar on Friday

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The capital city is likely to get a new mixed-use township -- ‘Neopolis’ -- in the 158 hectares of land at Technopark Phase-IV at Pallipuram. It is the first component of the proposed Outer Area Growth Corridor (OAGC) project near the proposed outer ring road. The Capital Region Development Project (CRDP)-II, under the aegis of the local self-government department, will be developed with a seed fund of `1,000 crore from the Centre. The final nod from the Centre is expected soon. The project will be implemented in addition to the project called QUAD at Technopark Phase IV under the aegis of the state government and Technopark. 

Earlier, the state government had submitted a detailed proposal in connection with the Request for Proposal (RFP) floated by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA). The proposal identified a suitable land parcel on the outskirts of the city, that has good potential for economic growth with adequate infrastructure in its vicinity and meets the criteria laid down in the RFP. Incidentally, Thiruvananthapuram is soon to be selected as one of the eight cities in India to implement the project. 

The MoHUA called the RFP based on the report by the 15th Finance Commission, which was released last year. As per the commission’s report, no new city has been developed in the country, and hence the commission, for the first time, had created a provision for `8,000 crore as an incentive grant for eight states for the incubation of one new city each as a pilot. All new cities should be developed on the principle of smart cities, and the selection of new cities will be on a performance-based challenge mode. 

The scheme envisages providing financial assistance for the incubation of eight new cities during the award period of the 15th Finance Commission, which is from 2021-22 to 2025-26. A state can have only one new city through this fund.

The main theme for OAGC Neopolis is aerospace technology, and it is likely to host a space park as an integrated township for the development of aerospace clusters dedicated to other allied electronics, software, and other IT sectors.

Ajitkumar, Special Officer, CRDP, told TNIE that the Union government is actively considering Thiruvananthapuram as one of the eight cities, and is likely to grant approval soon. “The Neopolis will be the very first component of the proposed OAGC. Since the Centre gives Rs 1,000 crore as seed fund, we can start the work once an official communication is received. Once it is materialised, the current projects in Technopark Phase IV will also come under Neopolis,” he said.

Features

• The proposed IT township will have residential buildings, malls, recreational facilities, and five-star hotels. 
•  The township will be a full-fledged city to promote the latest technologies such as robotics, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, data analytics, blockchain, and the Internet of Things. 
• The Neopolis will be developed jointly under the Special Purpose Company (SPC) promoted by Thiruvananthapuram corporation, Andoorkonam panchayat, Mangalapuram panchayat, CRDP, and Technopark to enable faster development and direct administration of infrastructure, employment, economy, and ecology by attracting investments and talents. 
• OAGC Neopolis of Thiruvananthapuram will become a self-governed global centre of economic activity.

CRDP proposal
The proposal from the CRDP to the Centre was submitted on January 20 this year. An expert committee meeting was held on May 11, under the chairmanship of the secretary, MoHUA, New Delhi. A revised proposal was also submitted to MoHUA on June 26 for increasing the land area from 50 ha to 158 ha for OAGC Neopolis with a request for gap funding of Rs 723.32 crore from MoHUA for a project cost of Rs 1,446.64 crore.