THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The World Trade Centre (WTC) project proposed by the Brigade Group at Technocity in Thiruvananthapuram may be delayed because of the apathy of the state government and Technopark authorities. It is learnt there was a delay on the part of the government in issuing licences for various activities that are being planned at the WTC.
There are also issues related to land transfer. The delay comes at a time when the state is in desperate need of IT space. The state government is yet to take steps to utilise the 61 acres of under-utilised land in Technopark phase III and IV.
The WTC was proposed as part of a larger mixed-use development concept that also includes hotels, serviced apartments, working professionals’ hostels, neighbourhood retail and entertainment. The Brigade Group, however, is going ahead with the proposed 2-lakh sqft IT building in Technopark phase-I and the construction is likely to begin this year.
The Brigade Group had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Technopark and the state government on February 11, 2019 for developing the WTC at Technocity. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Brigade Group CMD M R Jaishankar had signed the MoU in the presence of President Engineering Roshin Mathew and then Technopark CEO Hrishikesh Nair.
Technopark had allotted 12 acres to the Brigade Group to build the centre. WTC was expected to generate 15,000 jobs while promoting the region as a global destination for international businesses, investors, local chambers and other associations. The Brigade Group has barely three acres of land in total in Gujarat and Thiruvananthapuram, according to the graphical representation of its land bank in India, which was released as part of its quarterly results on June 30. It indicates the group might have withdrawn from the project planned on the 12-acre plot allotted to it in Technopark phase-IV.
Sources said the group may scale down the project in Thiruvananthapuram to the 2-lakh sqft IT building in Technopark phase-I. However, they have not scrapped the WTC project so far. IT secretary Biswanath Sinha told TNIE that he was unaware of the issues. According to Kerala IT Parks CEO John M Thomas, the confirmation received from the Brigade Group was only for their project in Technopark phase-I.
“Brigade Group is building a 2-lakh sqft IT building on phase-I campus and they will start construction this year itself,” he said.The Brigade Group holds WTC licences for all major cities such as Bengaluru, Kochi, Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram and Hyderabad. WTC Bengaluru and WTC Kochi at Infopark are already operational while WTC Chennai is under construction.
When contacted, the Brigade Group responded that it had to rethink its strategy with respect to the project owing to the pandemic and the market sluggishness. The company stated in an e-mail communication that the project is shelved for the time being.