Kochi, the Queen of Arabian Sea, which has been a shadow of its past for a long time, is now in the limelight as one of the most actively emerging cities not only in India but in South Asia.
Way back in 1999, Cochin International Airport was the first airport project in the country implemented under the Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) model. Currently, it ranks as the 4th largest airport in India in terms of international passenger traffic—after Mumbai, Delhi and Chennai—and the 7th largest airport in terms of domestic passenger traffic. Cochin International Airport Ltd, the airport developer and operator, is now looking at replicating the successful model in other states and countries. It also wants to develop an Aerotropolis around the airport.(Read the interview)
Area in and around the International Airport is developing at a fast rate. The
projects coming up and under various stages are Aerotropolis, which means an Airport city that includes 18 holed Golf Course of International standards, Two Five star hotels and few budget hotels, trde and cultural village, exhibition and convention centres, amusement parks, food courts, multiplexes, shopping malls. Also it will include an IT park, BPO park and Biotech park.Airport authorities held talks with Cochin University of Science and Technology for establishing an aviation academy and also in talks with IIMs for a programme in aviation management.
Interestingly Airport is planning is to have a flying school. Flying School would like to use the old Cochin airport runway for a few hours a day and offer revenue share to the Indian Navy. Old Cochin airport is situated in Naval Enclave in Wellington Island area opposite to Vathuruthy.
Airport is setting up a Rs 60-crore centre for perishable cargo with a Rs 15-crore grant from the Agricultural & Processed Food Products Export Development Authority, which will handle 30,000 mt of export-import cargo a year and held talks with airlines like Etihad and Emirates to start a dedicated cargo service from Cochin. They have started constructing an exclusive cargo bay for this centre.
The local panchayat, Nedumbassery is one of the highest revenue earners in the State in terms of collection local taxes / other taxes levied by the State and Central Govts. It is developing at fast rate to become perhaps into a town.
Two Four star hotels are coming up in MC road, One at Kalady and the other near Airport.
These developments are coming up only in Airport area alone even making Kochi city to feel shy. The mammoth developments in Airport vicinity is unimaginable for any other airport in the world, as Kochi has strong base in Tourism. No other airport in Kerala has even a percent of the majesty that this airport has! The passenger traffic has heavily declined in Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode airport once the International airport started functioning.
100 FLOORED INTERNATIONL TRADE CENTRE:
The Board of Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (Kinfra) has appointed Mumbai-based Zoom Developers to provide full design consultancy services for the proposed International Exhibition and Trade Centre at Kalamasserry near Kochi. The trade centre is planned in the prestigious Kinfra Hi-tech Park cluster and is expected to be operational in three years.
The project is coming up on 40 acres of Kinfra land at Kalamasserry, 25 km from Cochin International Airport and 26 km from the seaport. The trade centre is to have world-class facilities and will be built in Kerala style of architecture, according to Kinfra officials. The exhibition hall and the convention centre are expected to have an area of 5.6 million sq. ft. The convention centre will be designed to be used as a theatre, if required.
The project will also include a 5-star hotel of 31 floors providing 400 rooms, a 100-storey office tower which will be one of its kind in India, and a shopping mall spread on six floors. The trade centre is coming up in a five-storey building. Other amenities include a club house, service apartments, restaurants, ATM centres, a post office, Internet café and multilevel car parking.
It is great to see that all these developments are coming up in Kochi. Now what Kochi needs is basic infrastructure developments. Projects are going ahead to cope up during monsoon. Usually in the past years during the rainy seasons Ern
akulam used to drown! But now its level is low and conditions improved. Recently East Fort in Thiruvananthapuram was in news as the area get fully drenched even if it rains for few minutes. Ernakulam doesn't have to face such shame now.The Kochi area also needs to be expended from the present meagre area. It should be expanded up to Kodungaloor, Cherthala etc and should comprise of many other areas like Perumbavur, Chalakuddy, Pallipuram(Cherai area) etc.
HOPING FOR A BRIGHTER KOCHI!!
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