KOCHI: The National Industrial Corridor Development and Implementation Trust (NICDIT) has approved the development of the Kochi Global Industrial Finance and Trade (GIFT) City as an early bird project under the Kochi Bangalore Industrial Corridor.
The proposed GIFT City will come up in 220 hectares of land in Aluva Municipality, near the Cochin International Airport. The aim is to bring in investment for the development of trunk infrastructure to the tune of Rs 1,600 crore, besides giving a spur to building public-private partnership infrastructure to the tune of Rs 18,000 crore over 10 years.
“GIFT City is an Onam gift to the people of Kerala. We are planning to complete the land acquisition by February 2021. The master planning agency will start work from early September this year and complete the master plan by February 2021. Activities like MoEF clearance, tenders etc. will start in March 2021 and will be completed by May-June 2021,” said Alkesh Kumar Sharma, Additional Chief Secretary-Industries (KBIC) who is also heading the Special Projects in Kerala.
The GIFT City will create over 1.20 lakh direct and 3.6 lakh indirect employment opportunities for people of Kerala and have a great multiplier effect on the state's economy. The Global City Project is planned with the financial/business centre as an integral part and will be a growth driver for the city complemented with knowledge-based industries. It would be providing an integrated ecosystem for the development of globally competitive hi-tech services and a financial hub.
“Master planning activities will be completed in eight months and construction work will start after the selection of an agency for construction through a transparent bidding process,” added Sharma.
The state government has accorded administrative sanction for establishing and developing the GIFT City. The government of Kerala has also sanctioned an amount of Rs 540 crore for the acquisition of land which will be the share of the state in the project, Sharma added.
The NICDIT will undertake detailed master planning and preliminary engineering and design report, 3D model, EIA study and environment clearance, developing tender package and BIMmodel, and complete Bid process management in consultation with the state government. Meanwhile, the Union government, through NICDIT, will provide an equal amount as its share in the project. The Centre will also provide additional funds if required for completing the infrastructure works as a soft loan to the special purpose vehicle.
This project will put Kochi on the global map as a destination with state-of-the-art infrastructure. The investment will be able to provide a boost to the development process in the region. It will act as a catalyst for development bringing in additional investments and provide huge direct and indirect employment.