In a significant advancement for the Phase III project at Infopark, the government has appointed Shaji V Nair, the current CEO of Cochin Smart Mission Ltd, as the nodal officer responsible for the land pooling process, which encompasses approximately 500 acres.
This decision is anticipated to accelerate the procedures related to land pooling. Previously, the Greater Cochin Development Authority (GCDA) had requested the government to designate a nodal officer for the land pooling initiative.
The authority has already pinpointed the specific land parcels that will be pooled for the proposed Phase III campus. A total of 300 acres in the Kizhakkambalam panchayat is set to be pooled for the integrated IT township. Officials from GCDA indicated that the land identification process is currently underway, utilizing Google Map data, with a focus on barren lands that do not contain houses or other structures.
We have initiated the process of determining the precise land parcels to be pooled in Kizhakkambalam panchayat. A meeting with landowners will be organized in the near future. Following this meeting, the authority will issue a land pooling notification, which will formally outline the details of the land parcels designated for the project, stated a source from GCDA.
The Phase III project is being executed collaboratively by GCDA and Infopark under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that assigns GCDA the task of identifying appropriate land. Land pooling entails a collective agreement among landowners to contribute their parcels for public projects or infrastructure development; after the reconfiguration of plots and subsequent development, the owners will receive 60% of their original land back, with its value potentially increasing three to four times.
While GCDA will spearhead the land pooling process, the ownership of the project will remain with Infopark. The project is projected to attract an investment of Rs 25,000 crore and is expected to be completed by the year 2030.
