The Hindu Business Line : Talks on SmartCity satisfactory: Tecom

Thiruvananthapuram, Sept. 9 The first round of talks between the visiting Tecom team from Dubai and the State Government ended on a ‘satisfactory note’ here on Wednesday.

The two sides will sit for a second round on Thursday, according to Mr Fareed Abdulrahman, Chief Executive Officer of Tecom, who headed the Dubai delegation.

Talks focussed on ways to remove the roadblocks to ensure smooth implementation of the Rs 1,500-crore IT infrastructure project in Kochi.

The company presented its position to the Chief Secretary, Ms Neela Gangadharan, the Chief Minister’s Principal Secretary, Ms Sheela Thomas, and other top officials who participated in the discussion on behalf of the government.

A top government official said that the officials would brief the Chief Minister on the issues before the second round of discussions on Thursday.

The issues at stake included registration of the fresh lease and incorporating in it various provisions of the Framework Agreement signed between the two parties, apart from acquisition of 19 cents at the centre of a plot admeasuring 114 acres.

The differences between the two sides pertain mainly to Tecom’s demand for freehold over 12 per cent of the land to be allotted for the project. The company wants to have this right at the start itself, so that it can go about the works of building a compact township in the land received with freehold right.

The State Government is of the opinion that the issue can wait till the master plan for the project is ready.

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