KOCHI: Giving fresh impetus to Kerala’s IT push, the cabinet on Wednesday gave administrative approval for the construction of a 17-storey IT building at Infopark Phase I in Kochi. The approval for the new project comes at a time when the IT park has been struggling to find space for a long list of companies that have been waiting to set up their offices. As of now, more than 120 companies are on the waitlist.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the non-SEZ IT building will be constructed on 88 cents. The state-of-the-art structure will be completed in two years at a cost of Rs 118.33 crore, offering a space of approximately 1.9 lakh square feet. He said the project will be executed by Infopark using its own funds and by availing a bank loan. “With the completion of the project, direct employment opportunities will be created for more than 2,000 people in the IT and ITES sectors. These steps are affirming Kochi’s status as an IT hub on the global IT map,” Pinarayi said.
Sources said the building will come up near the southern gate of Phase I. This is not the first time Infopark is taking a bank loan. Earlier, the IT park had availed of a loan from Nabard and was able to close it within the allotted time frame.
“The quantum of the loan will be decided after taking into consideration the funds needed for the Phase III and IV projects,” Infopark CEO Susanth Kurunthil said.
A cabinet decision regarding the takeover of the Traco Cable land by Infopark is expected to be made by next month. “So, an amount needs to be earmarked for the handover,” Susanth said.
With a Crisil rating of ‘A/Stable’, Infopark stands well placed to secure loans. At present, Infopark has a total of 323 acres of campus space across its locations, with 92 lakh sq ft of built-up area in Kakkanad, Kochi. The Kochi campus is the main hub, encompassing the majority of the built-up space, while satellite campuses are located in Cherthala and Koratty.
Of the 92 lakh sq ft space, only 41,799 sq ft of office space is now available for new entrants. Currently, the IT hub has 582 companies employing a total of 73,500 people. With the realisation of Phase III, for which 500 acres are being realised through the land pooling method in Kizhakkambalam and Kunathunadu panchayats, the total space will increase to 2 crore sq ft.
As to the companies on the waiting list, none of them are major brands, Susanth said.
