KOCHI, 22 September 2007 — The Mumbai-based Housing Development and Infrastructure Ltd (HDIL) has announced its plans to set up Rs.20 billion information technology park at Kalamassery, near Kochi. Top officials of the company, headed by its Chairman Rakesh Kumar Wadhawan, made a presentation on the project, styled, “HDIL Cybercity,” before the Industries Minister, Elamaram Kareem. The park will come up on a 70-acre plot with a total built-up area of 7.9 million sq. ft., out of which 5.4 million sq. ft. will be used for IT ventures. The remaining area will be utilized for hotels, service apartments, shopping malls, club house, school and residential structures. Wadhawan said that the project was expected to generate 65,000 new jobs, with IT companies alone accounting for 60,000 jobs.
Fashion Technology Institute
The federal government has assured the state to set up National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) center in Kannur, Industries Minister Elamaram Kareem told the state assembly. The state government had appointed Kerala Infrastructure Development Corporation (KINFRA) as its nodal agency for the preliminary work to set up the NIFT’s center. It had already earmarked Rs.30 million for preliminary works of the Rs.586.5 million project.
New Chief Secretary
Senior-most Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer P.J. Thomas was appointed chief secretary after Lizzie Jacob resigned protesting Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan’s unpleasant comments against her. Thomas, who began his career as sub-collector of Fort Kochi, had served as principal secretary and chief electoral officer.
Earlier, Achuthanandan had to succumb to the pressures of the IAS Officers Association which protested the move to appoint K.J. Mathew bypassing Thomas. Other senior officers, Vinod Rai, Gopalakrishna Pillai and his wife Sudha Pillai, all holding plum posts in New Delhi, refused to come back to the state. Reports said Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) also turned down Achuthanandan’s request to spare one of them.
