By IANS,
Kochi : The Smart City Kochi, the integrated township with an SEZ for knowledge-based industries being developed at a cost of Rs.15 billion (Rs.1,500 crore or $377 million), participated at an entrepreneurship Summit in Bangalore to raise its profile, it said Thursday.
A joint venture between Dubai-based Smart City and the Kerala government, Smart City Kochi participated in the third edition of TiE Entrepreneurship Summit (TES), which ended Thursday.
In a statement, Smart City Kochi said its presence at the summit was a strategic move to increase its visibility, with the ultimate aim of raising the awareness levels before the large IT/ITES fraternity representing global IT/ITES enterprises.
TES is Asia’s largest summit bringing together entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, policy makers, academia, thought leaders and other stake holders. TES focuses on unlocking entrepreneurial energies to power the fastest growing economies in the region.
TiE or The Indus Enterprises, with a similar goal, is based in Florida.
Smart City and Smart City Kochi chief executive Fareed Abdul Rahman said the world faced a severe downturn. “At the same time we are witnessing the rising of a new India, bold and powerful like never before,” he added.
“But we still have much work in our hands laying a strong foundation and in shaping up the policy for the years to come and I feel that efforts of TiE in organizing events like Entrepreneurship Summit will pay rich dividends in the future,” said Rahman.
Smart City Kochi’s fifth crucial board meeting takes place later this month when the issue of stamp duty exemption for the project’s 246 acres of land is to be taken up.
The central government has rejected the state’s proposal seeking special economic status for 100 acres of the project. The sanction for SEZ status for 136 acres was earlier cleared.