It will come up on Corporation property near Collectorate
Officials of the Ministry of External Affairs have identified land in Coimbatore for setting up a Regional Passport Office.
Regional Passport Officer, Chennai, Sumathi Ravichandran, said the office would come up on a property owned by the Corporation near the Collectorate.The State Government has agreed to construct the office on a 12,000 sq. ft area. The work would be completed within three months from the date of commencement.
The RPO said the rush for applying for passports under the `tatkal' scheme had subsided with the end of summer holidays.
The authorities were now able to complete renewal of passports under the normal category in 12 days. Earlier, this took more than a month and a half.
The RPO said fresh passport applications could be submitted to District Passport Centres functioning at the Deputy Commissioner of Police office at Adyar, Anna Nagar and Flower Bazaar.
Those applying for passports under the `tatkal' category could attach any of the following documents to prove their identity: electors photo identity card, freedom fighter card, arms licence, property documents such as pattas and registered deeds, ration card or bank/kisan/post office passbook. Those with any of these documents need not wait for police verification. Passport officials would do a post-issuance verification, she said.
Last year, the RPO authorities received 37,600 passport applications under the `tatkal' category and issued 37,400 passports. Till May 31 this year 26,100 applications were received under the scheme and nearly 25,000 passports issued.
source :www.the hindu
Monday, June 18, 2007
Coimbatore next stop on IT map; realty to boom
Coimbatore's real estate market is set to change, with IT parks, hotels and malls being planned. But if you want to invest in property here you just might have missed the bus, reports CNBC-TV18.
Suressh Menda has been in Coimbatore's property market for the past 20 years. This director of Coimbatore-based Presidium Constructions says the market here has never been so excited by hopes of an IT boom.
Menda says, "Housing will go up tremendously, correlated with that activity like mall-building, will also go up. You require hotels for industry to be placed there, so it's a whole cycle that is going to take place linked to the ITES industry here."
Over the next two-and-a-half years, 5 to 10 million sq. ft. will be developed for IT. Three dedicated IT special economic zones are expected. Besides, hotels will take up about 10 lakh sq. ft. of land. The Taj, Meridien and Kennilworth are reported to have acquired land for their projects. Coimbatore also looks set to change the way it shops.
He says, "Avanashi Road is at the center of high-street shopping in Coimbatore, but like this city, this road does not have a single shopping mall. All that is going to change over the next two to three years, when four million sq. ft. of retail space will come up on either side of this road."
In anticipation of all this activity, property prices have already increased by 300%, in some cases. Now experts say a correction is expected.
N Ananthanarayanan, Regional Director, JLL-Meghraj, says, "What's happened is that Coimbatore had a sympathy rise along with Chennai, but with prices in Chennai itself flattening out, it looks like Coimbatore will also flatten out."
Like Chennai, Coimbatore's population mix will also change. Experts say between 25,000 and 30,000 IT workers will come into Coimbatore in the next two or three years. That will keep firm the demand for quality housing.
Source : www.moneycontrol.com
Suressh Menda has been in Coimbatore's property market for the past 20 years. This director of Coimbatore-based Presidium Constructions says the market here has never been so excited by hopes of an IT boom.
Menda says, "Housing will go up tremendously, correlated with that activity like mall-building, will also go up. You require hotels for industry to be placed there, so it's a whole cycle that is going to take place linked to the ITES industry here."
Over the next two-and-a-half years, 5 to 10 million sq. ft. will be developed for IT. Three dedicated IT special economic zones are expected. Besides, hotels will take up about 10 lakh sq. ft. of land. The Taj, Meridien and Kennilworth are reported to have acquired land for their projects. Coimbatore also looks set to change the way it shops.
He says, "Avanashi Road is at the center of high-street shopping in Coimbatore, but like this city, this road does not have a single shopping mall. All that is going to change over the next two to three years, when four million sq. ft. of retail space will come up on either side of this road."
In anticipation of all this activity, property prices have already increased by 300%, in some cases. Now experts say a correction is expected.
N Ananthanarayanan, Regional Director, JLL-Meghraj, says, "What's happened is that Coimbatore had a sympathy rise along with Chennai, but with prices in Chennai itself flattening out, it looks like Coimbatore will also flatten out."
Like Chennai, Coimbatore's population mix will also change. Experts say between 25,000 and 30,000 IT workers will come into Coimbatore in the next two or three years. That will keep firm the demand for quality housing.
Source : www.moneycontrol.com
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
Work on IT Park in Coimbatore will begin by Aug -- CM approves building design
The project would come up within 18 months of finalising the modalities at an estimated investment of Rs 200-250 crore.
The long-awaited Government mooted IT Park in Coimbatore is likely to see some shape soon.
The Electronics Corporation of Tamil Nadu (ELCOT) Managing Director, Mr C. Umashankar, told Business Line that the State Government has approved the building design and the construction activity would begin by August.
He said the ELCOT board and TIDCO (Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation) shortlisted three designs for the Chief Minister's approval two days back.
He has approved one of the three structures.
"We will float the tender and announce the financial closure shortly,'' Mr Umashankar said.
The Chief Minister laid the foundation stone two months ago. Mr Umashankar then indicated that the project would come up within 18 months of finalising the modalities.
Initially, an area of 29 acres was transferred from the Health Department to the IT Department for the proposed park.
Thereafter, an additional 33 acres was also acquired near the Coimbatore Medical College campus, with the Government contemplating developing social infrastructure projects.
The park is expected to have a built-up area of one million sq.ft. and the estimated investment on this has been pegged at Rs 200 crore to Rs 250 crore.
"Since it has the Special Economic Zone status, we will be eligible to get a 20 per cent rebate on imported items,'' Mr Umashankar said.
Wipro and Tata Consultancy Services, who have been allotted 10 acres and 5 acres respectively for establishing their own campus, are also expected to start work on the project.
The long-awaited Government mooted IT Park in Coimbatore is likely to see some shape soon.
The Electronics Corporation of Tamil Nadu (ELCOT) Managing Director, Mr C. Umashankar, told Business Line that the State Government has approved the building design and the construction activity would begin by August.
He said the ELCOT board and TIDCO (Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation) shortlisted three designs for the Chief Minister's approval two days back.
He has approved one of the three structures.
"We will float the tender and announce the financial closure shortly,'' Mr Umashankar said.
The Chief Minister laid the foundation stone two months ago. Mr Umashankar then indicated that the project would come up within 18 months of finalising the modalities.
Initially, an area of 29 acres was transferred from the Health Department to the IT Department for the proposed park.
Thereafter, an additional 33 acres was also acquired near the Coimbatore Medical College campus, with the Government contemplating developing social infrastructure projects.
The park is expected to have a built-up area of one million sq.ft. and the estimated investment on this has been pegged at Rs 200 crore to Rs 250 crore.
"Since it has the Special Economic Zone status, we will be eligible to get a 20 per cent rebate on imported items,'' Mr Umashankar said.
Wipro and Tata Consultancy Services, who have been allotted 10 acres and 5 acres respectively for establishing their own campus, are also expected to start work on the project.
Chennai's growth clouds Coimbatore's attempt to be IT hub
Coimbatore has always been touted as an alternative to Chennai for companies to invest in. However, in recent years, Chennai's rapid growth has clouded Coimbatore's attempt to become an attractive IT destination, reports CNBC-TV18.
Perot Systems is expanding its Coimbatore facility so that it can double its existing headcount. The company, which has offices in Noida, Bangalore and Chennai, apart from Coimbatore, says its experience here has been as good as any of its other Indian centres.
"Our experience has been so good, which is why, we are substantially ramping up operations. This has, primarily, been possible because of great manpower availability,” said Srinivasa Rao, Chief Financial Officer at Perot Systems.
This availability stems from the fact that Coimbatore has three universities, 21 Engineering colleges and over 65 Arts and Science colleges. Apart from Perot, Robert Bosch and Cognizant are the only other big IT companies here, which means that attrition rates, the IT and BPO industry's biggest bugbear, are much lower. That along with lower staff and real estate costs, means that Perot saves about 25% by working from Coimbatore. In spite of this, Coimbatore's overall perfomance as an IT hub is still lagging behind.
On a 29-acre parcel of land, a new proposed IT park will come up. On adjacent plots, Wipro and TCS’ campuses will come up. But after a rather quick land acquisition process, work has almost ground to a stand still. This concerns the local IT industry, which believes that, unless this IT park comes up, Coimbatore's nascent IT industry will never boom.
Experts say IT in Coimbatore has still not taken off as expected because Chennai is still not overcrowded and its old Mahabalipuram Road is emerging as Tamil Nadu's IT Highway. But as cost savings become obvious and the new IT park comes up, Coimbatore could well be Tamil Nadu's next IT boomtown.
Perot Systems is expanding its Coimbatore facility so that it can double its existing headcount. The company, which has offices in Noida, Bangalore and Chennai, apart from Coimbatore, says its experience here has been as good as any of its other Indian centres.
"Our experience has been so good, which is why, we are substantially ramping up operations. This has, primarily, been possible because of great manpower availability,” said Srinivasa Rao, Chief Financial Officer at Perot Systems.
This availability stems from the fact that Coimbatore has three universities, 21 Engineering colleges and over 65 Arts and Science colleges. Apart from Perot, Robert Bosch and Cognizant are the only other big IT companies here, which means that attrition rates, the IT and BPO industry's biggest bugbear, are much lower. That along with lower staff and real estate costs, means that Perot saves about 25% by working from Coimbatore. In spite of this, Coimbatore's overall perfomance as an IT hub is still lagging behind.
On a 29-acre parcel of land, a new proposed IT park will come up. On adjacent plots, Wipro and TCS’ campuses will come up. But after a rather quick land acquisition process, work has almost ground to a stand still. This concerns the local IT industry, which believes that, unless this IT park comes up, Coimbatore's nascent IT industry will never boom.
Experts say IT in Coimbatore has still not taken off as expected because Chennai is still not overcrowded and its old Mahabalipuram Road is emerging as Tamil Nadu's IT Highway. But as cost savings become obvious and the new IT park comes up, Coimbatore could well be Tamil Nadu's next IT boomtown.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Pentasoft to replicate `Mayajaal' theme park in tier-II, III cities
Coimbatore first in list; total investments at Rs 100 cr
Growth plan
Coimbatore June 10 Pentasoft Technologies is in the process of redefining its growth plan. The company is not only looking to expand the reach of its technical training centres but also striving to strengthen its position in the entertainment space.
The company plans to replicate its `Mayajaal' theme park in tier-II and tier-III cities. "`We plan to launch the PentaGraphics Mayajaal theme park with multiplex in Coimbatore, Bhubaneshwar, Madurai, Hyderabad and Mysore within the next two to three years. The Coimbatore Park will come up first. We are looking for suitable land of, say, 5 to 6 acres," its CEO, Mr Hari Haran, said.
The company has estimated the total investment on the expansion plans at Rs 100 crore, and plans to raise this through private equity. Mr Hari Haran said the announcement could be expected by end-October. Its equity base at present is Rs 200 crore.
He also indicated that the company would start a Multimedia Academy at its Mayajaal campus in Chennai very soon. "The Academy has been proposed on an estimated investment of Rs 6.5 crore (excluding land cost). All the residential training programmes on animation, special effects and trend courses would be conducted here, and all franchisees would be affiliated to the Academy," he said.
Setbacks
The company, which had established a strong franchisee network in early 2000, faced a setback when the IT training institutes across the country were confronted with a crisis. The numbers slipped: from over 200 in 2001 to just over 20 at present.
It now plans to revive the tie-ups by targeting 50 this year, before taking it to its earlier level in 18 months. "We are also planning to offer online services within the next 9 months. We propose to tie-up with 400 franchisees across Tamil Nadu for growing our online services."
On production of animation movies, he said: "We have so far produced six, but are looking to produce at least two animation films every year from now. The selection of the animation movie Buddha for the Oscar this year has actually driven us to produce more such films. Ganesha is slated to be released within the next 6 months, and this would also be sent for the Oscars," he added.
Growth plan
- Theme park planned in 5 centres in next 2-3 yrs.
- Also plans online services in next 9 months.
- Wants to make at least 2 animation films a year.
Coimbatore June 10 Pentasoft Technologies is in the process of redefining its growth plan. The company is not only looking to expand the reach of its technical training centres but also striving to strengthen its position in the entertainment space.
The company plans to replicate its `Mayajaal' theme park in tier-II and tier-III cities. "`We plan to launch the PentaGraphics Mayajaal theme park with multiplex in Coimbatore, Bhubaneshwar, Madurai, Hyderabad and Mysore within the next two to three years. The Coimbatore Park will come up first. We are looking for suitable land of, say, 5 to 6 acres," its CEO, Mr Hari Haran, said.
The company has estimated the total investment on the expansion plans at Rs 100 crore, and plans to raise this through private equity. Mr Hari Haran said the announcement could be expected by end-October. Its equity base at present is Rs 200 crore.
He also indicated that the company would start a Multimedia Academy at its Mayajaal campus in Chennai very soon. "The Academy has been proposed on an estimated investment of Rs 6.5 crore (excluding land cost). All the residential training programmes on animation, special effects and trend courses would be conducted here, and all franchisees would be affiliated to the Academy," he said.
Setbacks
The company, which had established a strong franchisee network in early 2000, faced a setback when the IT training institutes across the country were confronted with a crisis. The numbers slipped: from over 200 in 2001 to just over 20 at present.
It now plans to revive the tie-ups by targeting 50 this year, before taking it to its earlier level in 18 months. "We are also planning to offer online services within the next 9 months. We propose to tie-up with 400 franchisees across Tamil Nadu for growing our online services."
On production of animation movies, he said: "We have so far produced six, but are looking to produce at least two animation films every year from now. The selection of the animation movie Buddha for the Oscar this year has actually driven us to produce more such films. Ganesha is slated to be released within the next 6 months, and this would also be sent for the Oscars," he added.
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