Smart City Dubai not to withdraw from Smart City Kochi

KOCHI - A board of directors meeting of the proposed Rs.1,500 crore Smart City Kochi concluded here Monday without taking any decision on the fate of the IT project.

At the same time, the developer Smart City Dubai said it has no plans to pull out from the project.

Speaking to reporters here after the meeting, Smart City Dubai chief executive Fareed Abdul Rehman said: “Some more discussions have to take place because certain issues have to be resolved. We are not asking for anything new but just want those things that have been already written in the agreement and we have not asked anything new.”

He also invited the Chief Secretary of the state to visit their office in Dubai and to see what they are doing there.

Smart City Dubai is sticking to the agreement where it has been mentioned that they would get 12 per cent freehold rights (around 30 acres from the 246 acres). The Kerala government is adamant that it will not allow any real estate dealing and it is on this that the project is hanging fire.

Interestingly, State Fisheries Minister and Smart City Kochi Chairman S. Sarma did not attend the meeting.

And for the first time there were protests at the venue of the meeting. Members of the youth organisation of the ruling Left Democratic Front and the Revolutionary Socialist Party shouted slogans asking the state government to impelement the project.