THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A high level delegation from Dubai Internet City (DIC) will visit Kerala within 10 days to hold discussions with the state government regarding the implementation of the Rs 1,500 crore Smart City Project in Kochi. State IT secretary Aruna Sundararajan said that the DIC had asked for 1,000 acres of land and the details of the involvement of the state government in the project would be worked out after the visit of the high level delegation.

The DIC had zeroed in on Kochi after scouting for prospective centers in all the southern states in October. The Smart City, to be established in 1,000 acres of land, of which 200 acres have already been identified, would provide employment to 10 lakh people in IT, ITES, telecom and media. Kochi Infopark CEO KG Girish Babu said that with the coming of DIC's Smart City, Kochi would emerge as a leading IT destination in South India.

IBS Software Services MD VK Mathews said that the setting up of Smart City project would add tremendous brand value to Kerala as well as a learning experience on how to set up modern infrastructure that covers roads, intelligent buildings, telecom infrastructure, power and other utilities.

Meanwhile, Sundararajan said that the new buildings completed at Infopark, Kochi and Technopark have addressed shortage of built-up infrastructure. "More real estate companies including L&T have evinced interest in setting up IT parks in Kochi. From a destination that was virtually unknown, Kerala has now emerged as a sought after destination with a minimum of two enquiries coming from prospective investors daily," she added.