SMART CITY TRIUMPHS OVER FALSE PROPAGANDA

Foundation stone for the mega IT park, Smart City was laid at the project site, Edachira Kochi by Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan and Fareed Abdul Rahman, Executive Director, Dubai Technology and Media Zone Authority (Tecom). The agreement for establishing the Smart City, with Tecom, which can be considered a model and a trend-setter for all future agreements with multinational companies was signed on 13th May. It has set a standard for all future multinational ventures in the State (and perhaps in the country if all concerned take note of the cues here) in the era of globalisation. The project is proposed to be completed in ten years with an outlay of Rs. 1,700/- crores. However, the first phase of the project is to be commissioned in two years.

There have been deliberate attempts to project the Left Democratic Front’s genuine concerns and objections to the harmful features of the previous UDF sponsored Smart City agreement as purposeful blocking of the State’s development. The UDF protagonists had no prick of conscience in dubbing the leaders of LDF as the enemies of development. But the substantial gains made by the LDF Government in the Smart City agreement arrived at through protracted and hard negotiations have proved their accusations as false and politically motivated.

On the other hand the juxtaposition of the gains in the new agreement with the relevant clauses in the old UDF draft agreement show the hollowness of their claims. The Smart City that is launched on 16th November is basically different from the UDF conceived Smart City which would have resulted in substantial loss for the people of Kerala.

Of the 246 acres of land promised for the project 234.5 acres was handed over to Tecome on 99 years lease the other day and the remaining 10.5 acres would be transferred when the evictees would be rehabilitated. An agreement for Smart City formulated under the previous UDF Government was a virtual surrender of the vital interests of the State. That Government planned to provide 236 acres of land on sale deed at a price of Rs. 36 crores. The company would provide 9 per cent shares only to the State. But the new agreement provides 246 acres of land at Rs. 104 crores as lease charge. The State would get 16 per cent shares in the beginning and 26 per cent shares after five years with two members in its Director Board and later its Chairmanship. The UDF proposed agreement claimed to generate 33,000 jobs. The new agreement envisages 90,000 jobs. However, the biggest joke about the agreement proffered by Shri. Oommen Chandy was that it did not mention anything about IT ventures in the proposed city. But the most important specific of the new agreement is that 70 per cent of the Smart City would be set apart for I.T. Of the 88 lakh sq.feet space to be built 62 lakh sq.feet is for IT alone. The UDF Government had not thought of any such stipulation. In fact, the previous agreement allowed the venturists to convert the bulk of the built in space in the Smart City for commercial purposes.

The previous agreement stood for surrendering Infopark entirely to the Smart City. No IT firm would be allowed to function not only in Infopark but in the whole of Ernakulam district. The present Government has already started further developments in the Infopark apart from the Smart City. It will be another International Centre of IT ventures. It is planned to create 40,000 jobs in the IT sector in Infopark in the coming years. The present agreement has also laid it down that in the event of the Smart City venture failing to produce the expected results the lease deed will be cancelled and Government would take over the land and buildings by paying only the lease amount. But under the previous agreement, in the eventuality mentioned above, Government would be forced to purchase the land and building at the market price available at that time. Under the LDF Smart City is a full-fledged IT centre but under the U.D.F. it would have been an I.T centre only in name. Anyway Kerala has been saved from the pitfalls of what would have been a lop-sided agreement. Now the State is not a mere facilitator but an honourable partner. The LDF Government and its Chief Minister has responded to the challenge of the Smart City in the most fitting manner. On the glorious 16th of November work on the project has begun.