The Kochi Smart City project has finally become a reality. The project was kicked off with the ground-breaking ceremony here on Saturday in the presence of the State Chief Minister, Mr Oommen Chandy.
Launching the work on the pavilion at the project site at Edachira near here, the Chief Minister said the first phase of the project would be operational within two years and work on the pavilion completed within 14 weeks.
Assuring all support from the Government to the promoters of the project, Mr Chandy stressed the need to complete the project in a time-bound manner.
SmartCity Kochi is not merely an IT project, but a major initiative with unique features that can create substantial employment and nurture Kerala's economy to the next level of growth. This should send an important message that Kerala is investor-friendly . SmartCity Kochi will be followed by other mega projects, the Chief Minister added .
Mr P.K.Kunhalikutty, State IT Minister and Chairman of SmartCity Kochi, said the project would enable the educated youth from the State to return home and find employment opportunities.
He said different phases have been set for the completion of the project and assured that they would be complied with.
During the meeting of the board of directors held ahead of the ground-breaking ceremony, the promoters had assured that they had set apart enough funds for the project. Completion of the project in a time-bound manner is what's important, he said.
Strategic project
Speaking on the occasion, Mr Abdullatif Almulla, Group CEO of Tecom Investments, said SmartCity Kochi was a strategic project for Kerala. “We are committed to create 90,000 jobs as per the framework agreement. It will attract Foreign Direct Investments and talented people to the State. And it will create the right opportunities for many start-ups to grow,” he said.
The partnership with the State Government was extremely important to his company. Thanking both the UAE and the State Government and also the previous LDF Government, Mr Almulla said Tecom had taken the project very seriously from day one. “We are committed to work with the State government continuously to ensure that the project moves forward and is delivered,” he said.