The Hindu Business Line : Development authority for Coimbatore mooted

THE Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), Coimbatore has called for the establishment of the Kongu Development Authority to boost the development of the Coimbatore region that is seeking to become a global outsourcing hub for different industries.

As the city is on the threshold of becoming the second largest IT centre after Chennai in Tamil Nadu, the chamber urged the various Government departments to address the issue of infrastructure bottlenecks to attract potential investors and improve the quality of life of the citizens.

Mr A. Sakthivel, President, ICCI, recalled the announcement made by the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Ms J. Jayalalithaa, about the promotion of Coimbatore as the second industrial hub in the State.

He said the formation of a Kongu Development Authority in Coimbatore would speed up work relating to establishment of industrial and tourism ventures in the region.

Mr Sakthivel said the Tamil Nadu Government has cleared the proposal for the establishment of an IT park in Coimbatore, and the Chairman of Wipro,

Mr Azim Premji, had visited Coimbatore recently. The Chairman and Chief Mentor of Infosys, Mr N. R. Narayana Murthy, has also agreed `in principle' to the chamber's request to put up a unit in the city.

These developments, he said, would help put Coimbatore back on the path of economic development, which suffered a setback after the serial bomb blasts in 1998.

Mr Mahendra Ramdas, Vice-President, ICCI, said the chamber has requested that the stretch on the Coimbatore-Salem NH from Lakshmi Mills junction in the city up to the Nilambur bypass be made into a four-lane road to ensure smooth traffic flow.

Mr Sakthivel said he met the Civil Aviation Secretary, Mr Ajay Prasad, on speeding up work on the expansion of the runway in the Coimbatore airport.

Since land acquisition took a long time, the land value shot up from around Rs 5.5 crore to Rs 35 crore.

The civil aviation department expressed its inability to foot such a high bill and asked for reworking the proposal to reduce the area to be acquired.

He said that without waiting for the land acquisition to be completed, the airport runway could be expanded to 10,000 ft.

This will enable bigger aircrafts (with a capacity to carry 250 passengers) to land. Already SilkAir, a regional wing of Singapore Airlines, and Sri Lankan Airlines have expressed a desire to bring Coimbatore under their networks.

Mr R. R. Balasundharam, Honrary Secretary, ICCI, said the chamber has asked for the formation of a ring road linking the roads from Coimbatore to Salem, Pollachi, Tiruchi, Palakkad, Mysore and Udhagamandalam so that long distance travellers could skip entering the city.

He said just as Bangalore was witnessing a construction boom in the peripheral areas, outlaying areas in Coimbatore too could witness substantial development once the ring road is formed.

Efforts are being made to obtain financial aid from the Centre for the Coimbatore cluster development project. The Union Commerce Minister, Mr Kamal Nath, he said, has agreed in principle to visit Coimbatore next month.

Mr C. R. Swaminathan, another Vice-President of ICCI, said the industry is willing to share the initial expenses on infrastructure works.

The assistance of a government agency has been sought to make a preliminary study of the infrastructure bottlenecks in areas such as the railway gate near Echanari on the Coimbatore-Pollachi road and Marappalam near ACC factory in Madukkarai on the Coimbatore-Palakkad road, which have been causing traffic hazards.

He said Coimbatore has emerged as a jewellery manufacturing hub and an estimated Rs 1,000 crore worth jewellery manufactured here finds its way to markets not only within the country but also overseas.

More Stories on : Infrastructure | Industry Associations | Tamil Nadu

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