Ready to call for tenders: Rajeeve

Kochi: Industries minister P Rajeeve and power minister K Krishnankutty visited the areas identified for the industrial manufacturing cluster in Palakkad on Tuesday.
Speaking to the media, Rajeeve said the state is ready to call for tenders as the master plan for the industrial smart city is done and environmental clearance has been obtained. "We had already acquired around 80% of the land as early as December 14, 2022 and got the approval of the National Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (NICDC) board.The detailed project report has been accepted and if the Centre puts in its share, we are ready to proceed," he said.
The project is expected to generate employment for nearly 98,000 people when it is completed. Rajeeve said a team of officials led by the union joint secretary will visit the proposed site on October 1 and a meeting will be held to finalise the way forward. While Rs 1710 crore was allocated for land acquisition, it cost the state Rs 1744 crore to complete the process. The Kerala Industrial Corridor Development Corporation will function as a special purpose vehicle with the state industrial secretary as chairman and the union industrial joint secretary as CEO.
He said a task force led, by the industrial secretary, Kinfra MD and GM, KSIDC MD, and the district collector, has been set up to oversee the project.
"It will be an industrial smart city with international standards. Around 100 acres will be a green belt area. There will be no red-level industries but only white, green and orange standards. Around 282 acres will be a utility area with infrastructure. There will be two rail overbridges and water supply will be from rainwater harvesting and a nearby quarry. Around 70 acres will be residential area. Around 420 acres will be earmarked for pharma and medical industries, including device manufacturing. A total of 172 acres will be allocated to the food processing and value addition sector and 55 acres for hi-tech industries," Rajeeve said.