New Delhi: The Board of Approvals on Special Economic Zones under the Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India today granted single SEZ status to the SmartCity Kochi project comprising 246 acres of land. The notification of the same will be issued within a month. This was one of the prime demands raised by Tecom, the promoters of SmartCity Kochi, to go ahead with the project.

Kochi: After much dilly-dallying, the work on the proposed SmartCity Kochi project, promoted by the Dubai based Tecom, is expected to get a crucial kick-start in six months and a full-fledged office of SmartCity will also come up in Kochi within two months. These were some of the key decisions at the meeting of the Board of Directors of SmartCity Kochi which was held in Dubai, for the first time, on January 15, 2013.

Kochi: Contrary to some reports, Tecom Officials have reiterated their commitment to the proposed SmartCity project in Kochi and according to them; the project is still on track. Meanwhile, the Kerala Government has expressed its unhappiness and concern about the tardy progress of the Rs.2,000 crore SmartCity Kochi project which has been in limbo for years.

Kochi: Tata Consultancy Services has firmed up its plans for its third Software Development Centre in Kerala. The new software export facility will come up at SmartCity Kochi with an investment of Rs.600 crores. To be spread over 26 acres, the Software Development Centre would seat about 9,000 IT professionals. TCS plans to launch the first phase by September, 2013. The SmartCity Kochi project is promoted by the Dubai based Tecom.

Kochi: SmartCity Kochi, a joint venture between the Dubai based SmartCity and the Government of Kerala, hosted the visit of a high profile delegation from the Australian Trade Commission, Austrade, which is the Australian Government’s trade and investment development agency, on August 23, 2012.

Kochi: The first phase of the SmartCity Kochi project will be completed in 18 months in a time bound manner. This was announced by Chief Minister Shri Oommen Chandy today after laying the foundation stone for the first building of SmartCity Kochi (SCK-01). The CM along with Abdul Latif Al Mulla, Group CEO, Tecom, the promoters of the project, jointly inaugurated the SmartCity sales Pavilion building today. The Board of Directors meeting was also held there after the inauguration.