SmartCity: Tecom keen to get going

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The SmartCity project in Kochi, first proposed seven years ago, appears set for realization with Dubai-based Tecom keen to get the project going after settling its differences with the Kerala government last week.

However, the company is silent on whether it would comply with Kerala chief minister VS Achuthanandan's demand last week that SmartCity CEO Fareed Abdul Rahman should be replaced with someone else.

In a statement, Tecom Investments group CEO Abdullatif AlMulla said he would soon travel to Kerala along with SmartCity board members to discuss the operations, and to decide on the resource allocation and appointment of key personnel for the project.

"We are extremely happy that the project is moving forward. The project is bigger than any issues surrounding it and the recent decisions were taken in the larger interest of the project and various stakeholders associated with it. The recent development is a reflection of our vision for SmartCity Kochi and commitment to the people of Kerala" AlMulla said.

He said the immediate priority was to sign the lease agreement to secure the designated land for the project, which will lead to the mission-critical SEZ notification of the land. He said the group was in the process of finalizing the documentation for land registration as well as ensuring that the master plan was ready soon.

Last week, chief minister VS Achuthanandan and Ahamed Humaid Al Tayer, member of the Dubai World Group had led the respective teams of the two partners in the project to sort out the differences that remained about the project even after seven years. SmartCity will come up on a 246-acre campus in Kochi, and has an outlay of roughly Rs 1,700 crore.

The crux of the disagreement between the two sides was about freehold rights to 12% of the land, with the right to sell that portion of the land. In the discussions last week, the Dubai team, however, dropped that demand.