Chennai Projects Update thread - III [Archive] - Page 8

satsukhoi

April 10th, 2008, 06:50 AM

Chennai, April 9: While the modernisation of Chennai airport would be completed by 2010, the state government is also examining the option of establishing a greenfield airport at Sriperumbudur, transport minister K.N. Nehru said on Wednesday. Tabling the policy note of his department, Mr Nehru said with the Chennai airport recording a significant growth in both passenger traffic and cargo movement as the city had transformed into a hub for foreign direct investment in various industrial sectors, the government had decided to modernize and expand it in coordination with the Centre.

The government was in the process of acquiring 1069.99 acres of land for this purpose while the Airports Authority of India (AAI) had proposed to spend about Rs 1800 crore for modernisation works scheduled for completion by 2010. While the state government was exploring the option of setting up a greenfield airport at Sriperumbudur near Chennai, measures were underway to acquire lands for expansion and modernisation of non-metro airports in Coimbatore, Madurai, Tiruchi and Thoothukudi as per the master plan submitted by the AAI.

Having already decided to set up an institute of aeronautical science and pilot training academy at Sriperumbudur in the name of late prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, the minister said, the AAI executive director was requested to undertake a techno-feasibility study of the proposed project. Accordingly, a team of officials made a preliminary inspection last year and as per the guidelines given by them, necessary action to identify a suitable site was being taken, he said.

Highlighting the TN government’s interest in the Madras Flying Club that serves as a training centre for boys and girls in flying and aircraft maintenance engineering, the policy note stated that the state government was sanctioning Rs 3.8 lakh per year as fixed subsidy and Rs 3.72 lakh as fuel subsidy to meet the establishment charges and other running expenditure of the club.

http://www.deccan.com/chennaichronicle/City/CityNews.asp#3,500%20more%20buses%20to%20hit%20state%20roads

Arul Murugan

April 10th, 2008, 06:56 AM

Good to see that Chennai got it 2nd mega flyover after more than 30 years?? (Am i correct??)

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/10/images/2008041051630301.jpg

Above pattern is planned for 1 month!

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/10/stories/2008041051630300.htm

Now the buses coming from Trichy, Salem, Madurai, South TN, Villupuram, Thiruvannamalai, Delta dt have to stop either before the flyover or after flyover. Even same applicable for MTCs!!

Bus users going to face little problem because of this.

qwertyasd

April 10th, 2008, 09:13 AM

not much focus on koyambedu flyover. they have done some basic work near vijaykanth's ex-wedding hall and also cleared some slums along cooum. otherwise nothing much. but i wonder how this clover lead flyover, elevated road to link maduravoyal & port and metro rail line can all co-exist.

padi flyover has progressed to a great extent. but that arm over the railway line is yet to start. perhaps they could consider completing all the other works (should be complete by now) and temporarily use the elevated arms to allow free flow of traffic on ring road. once the flyover is completely built irr traffic can be re-routed as per design to flow at grade with all turns and traffic along cth road using elevated rotary.

I was looking at the renderings for the padi junction online and i was wondering how an elevated rotary is advantageous compared to a normal rotary? The only thing i can see is that there may not be space for a rotary on the ground and hence you make it elevated. Is there any other advantage?

kpgopal

April 10th, 2008, 10:21 AM

I was looking at the renderings for the padi junction online and i was wondering how an elevated rotary is advantageous compared to a normal rotary? The only thing i can see is that there may not be space for a rotary on the ground and hence you make it elevated. Is there any other advantage?

I fully agree with you. I think that the pileup of vehicles will just get elevated to a higher level. I'm sure the TVS group must have pulled quite a few strings to ensure that a proper clover type formation is not done since they would have lost a lot of land.

dis.agree

April 10th, 2008, 10:33 AM

I was looking at the renderings for the padi junction online and i was wondering how an elevated rotary is advantageous compared to a normal rotary? The only thing i can see is that there may not be space for a rotary on the ground and hence you make it elevated. Is there any other advantage?

there is a railway track running parallel & very close to irr and simplest solution is elevated rotary with this arm over the railway line along cth for traffic from all roads. otherwise, they could have just had signals at this junction with a simple flyover along irr.

kollam_illam

April 10th, 2008, 12:24 PM

Chennai, Apr 9 (ANI): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi will inaugurate four projects completed at a total cost of Rs. 80 crore by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) here today.
M. Karunanidhi will also lay the foundation stone for foot-over bridge at Chromepet on the same day.
The function for the inaugural ceremony will be presided over by the Union Minister of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways Thiru T. R. Baalu and the Minister for Local Administration, Government of Tamil Nadu Thiru M.K Stalin will be the chief guest.
The guests of honour will be Thiru M.P. Swaminathan, Minister for Highways, Government of Tamil Nadu and Thiru T.M. Anbarasan, Minister for Labour, Government of Tamil Nadu.
The Irumbuliyur underpass has been built at a cost of Rs. four crore, four-laning of Chennai bypass phase-I up to Porur has been completed by NHAI at a cost of Rs. 70 crore, the pedestrian subway at Tirisulam has cost Rs. five crore and the bus shelter at Chromepet built under the MPLAD Scheme has cost Rs. 82 lakhs.
The completion of the Irumbuliyur underpass will facilitate right turn for the Tambaram traffic to access Chennai bypass and thereby quicker connectivity to the golden quadrilateral corridor.
The Chromepet foot-over bridge will facilitate the commuters in crossing NH-45 to access the railway station on the other side and vice versa which provides rail connectivity to southern part of Tamil Nadu, will cost Rs. 2.40 crore.
Baalu has expressed hope that with the completion of these four projects, the people living in and around these areas would be greatly benefited. (ANI)

Raj_network

April 10th, 2008, 02:11 PM

http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/holnus/006200804101422.htm

Raj_network

April 10th, 2008, 02:12 PM

http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/holnus/006200804101701.htm

PlaneMad

April 10th, 2008, 02:36 PM

Check out the kathipara map on openstreetmap
http://www.openstreetmap.org/?lat=13.00733&lon=80.20369&zoom=16&layers=B0FT

Raj_network

April 10th, 2008, 02:54 PM

Not infra side!

Proposal to bifurcate Chennai Police

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/10/stories/2008041057970100.htm

Arul Murugan

April 10th, 2008, 07:24 PM

Photo fron Dinakaran on Kathipara

http://dkn.dinakaran.co.in/1042008/10&04&05.jpg

In few days we will get night shot on Kathipara from these papers!! They have erected 4-5 high rise mass lamps and with car lights, Kathipara will be bustling!

Sathisht77

April 11th, 2008, 12:54 AM

CMDA's total screw up????

Your dream home in Chennai could be in jeopardy. The city's real estate developers are struggling to get clearance for projects totaling almost 50 million square feet.

A mall in Chennai has been delayed for over a year. It's not just shopping centers; almost 90% of the total construction in the city has been in limbo in spite of the projects being announced a year ago. The reason is that the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority, the governing body for approvals, has been delaying the files for well over a year.

Chitti Babu of Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association said that the project approvals were delayed by 12 to 18 months and without approval the investments on the land are very high. With the growing interest rates all the builders are finding it difficult to manage

The situation is worse in the IT space. According to the IT policy in Tamil Nadu, builders do not need an approval to construct the building but they need one to start operations. This has led to a large number of newly constructed buildings to lie vacant.

Ramesh Nair,Jones Lang Lasalle Meghraj said, "Most projects today are partly funded by private equity funds and private equity funds are looking at returns in 4-5 years. So, if the project gets delayed by more than a certain period of time the return obviously gets a hit."

http://www.moneycontrol.com/india/news/business/chennai-realty-projectslimbo/18/22/333846

Subra

April 11th, 2008, 01:23 AM

http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/holnus/006200804101422.htm
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Business/India_Business/AAI_shortlists_six_cos_for_airports_revamp/articleshow/2942556.cms

Kolkata airport modernisation has so far got pre-Public Investment Board (PIB) clearance but awaits PIB and CCEA nod. Chennai is yet to get all these three clearances.

Tamil Nadu government has also identified 5,000 acres of land near Sripeumbudur for building the second airport for Chennai. AAI is doing pre-feasibility studies as the state government wants the second airport to be ready in time.

Subra

April 11th, 2008, 01:30 AM

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/04/11/stories/2008041151830400.htm

Imageworks India, part of the US-based Sony Pictures Imageworks Inc, launched its new digital production studio in Chennai. This comes a year after an equity investment was made by Imageworks in FlameFlow, a visual effect and animation studio that has been now integrated with Imageworks.

The studio is the first full-fledged production centre of Imageworks in India. The ninety-plus employees, including artists, in the studio will work closely with their counterparts in Culver City, Novato and Alburquerque in the US. “We plan to integrate the workforce in different centres as a single unit,” Mr Tim Sarnoff, President, Sony Pictures Imageworks, told newspersons.

Sony Pictures Imageworks is an Academy Winning production studio dedicated to the art of visual effects and production and character animation. Its work got the Oscar for Spider-Man 2 and the computer graphic-animated short film The Chubbchubbs! Surf’s Up was nominated for this year’s Academy Award. In all these projects, the Chennai facility, which was till now FrameFlow, was involved, he said without disclosing any financial details of the facility at the Ascendas IT Park.

Mr Krishnakumar Mishra, Creative Director, Imageworks India, said the company would double its employees in Chennai this year. In addition to visual effects work, artists in Chennai now contribute to production in all of Imageworks’ pipelines, including the computer graphic animation, performance capture and 3D stereoscopic production.

Raj_network

April 11th, 2008, 09:48 AM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/11/stories/2008041152222000.htm

Quatrro acquires RSM McGladrey FPO

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/11/stories/2008041151881800.htm

Raj_network

April 11th, 2008, 09:51 AM

Chennai, Apr 10 : The new Assembly complex, being built to mark the celebration of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi's golden jubilee in the state Assembly, would be ready in two years, Public Works Minister Duraimurugan announced in the Assembly today.

Replying to the debate on the demand for grants for his department, he said the department has resolved to build the new Assembly complex in a short span of two years to mark the Public Work Department's 150th anniversary.

The new premises, coming up at the Government Estate off the arterial Anna Road, would be ready when the state budget for the year 2010-11 is presented, he said amid thumping of desks by the members.

The DMK government had announced the building of a modern new Assembly complex in May last year, when Mr Karunanidhi was felicitated for his golden jubilee, in the presence of Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee.

After deciding to locate the new complex at the Government Estate, the government had invited global tenders and the Chief Minister had selected a design submitted by German architect GMP.

http://www.newkerala.com/one.php?action=fullnews&id=46872

Raj_network

April 11th, 2008, 09:53 AM

:)CHENNAI: Southern Railways have become a bilion dollar company, said Rakesh Chopra, the General Manager of the Southern Railway. He was referring to the Rs 401- crore plus revenue the Southern Railway has generated during the last financial year.

"It was an increase of 12 pc with the earning from passenger traffic registering a growth of 22 pc. The Railway has also registered a phenomenal growth of about 45 lakh passengers per month during the year. Carrying 620 million passengers entailed running a record number of over 2000 special trains during the year. Goods traffic has also registered a growth of 14 pc compared to last year," he said.

The GM also urged all Divisional Railway Managers to spend from the money allotted to staff amenities last year. A capital investment of Rs 1500 crore also planned in the current year, he added.

He also urged the staff to take the urgent steps to tackle the global warming.

http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IE920080410122315&Title=Chennai&Topic=0&

Sathisht77

April 11th, 2008, 02:59 PM

:)CHENNAI: Southern Railways have become a bilion dollar company, ID=IE920080410122315&Title=Chennai&Topic=0&[/url]

Sure..good for them

But what have the passengers enjoyed of this. Still the toilets and stations stink.. the most outdated coaches which were discarded by the British. Terrible seats, cockroaches, rats and dim lit..Our trains are atleast 100 years behind the developed world.

Leo_r

April 11th, 2008, 06:30 PM

CMDA's total screw up????

http://www.moneycontrol.com/india/news/business/chennai-realty-projectslimbo/18/22/333846

Kannaninfra had explained the reason earlier why approvals are getting delayed.. It is all because of greed of BUILDERS and not following the rules of the game. There is no need for you to join them!

ranga

April 11th, 2008, 07:35 PM

Kannaninfra had explained the reason earlier why approvals are getting delayed.. It is all because of greed of BUILDERS and not following the rules of the game. There is no need for you to join them!

Is over 90% of the builders in Chennai are greedy? These CMDA fellows are not above board.I suspect corruption levels have reached unsatiated levels in CMDA, hence the inordinate delays.There is no use talking of new projects in chennai with renderings delighting the forumers when the authorities here in chennai, who are supposed to give approval,:ohno: themselves become stumbling blocks.

Subra

April 12th, 2008, 04:20 AM

http://www.livemint.com/2008/04/11235220/TOI8217s-launch-all-set-to.html

Chennai: From Monday, Mount Road’s Mahavishnu will compete on its home turf with the Old Lady of Boribunder.
For years, The Times of India (TOI)—published by Bennett, Coleman and Co. Ltd (BCCL), has steered clear of Chennai— where The Hindu—published by Kasturi and Sons Ltd (located almost on one end of the city’s arterial Mount Road)—had reigned.
On 14 April, Tamil New Year’s Day and a public holiday, that will change.
For almost three months now, BCCL has had around 1,000 college students visiting homes and offices to promote the paper. It has also advertised on more than 100 billboards across the city. TOI is the country’s largest selling English daily and, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulation (ABC), has a circulation of 3,156,645 copies.
The Hindu is no minnow itself, and has a circulation of 1,330,518, of which Chennai alone contributes 280,473. ABC is a body of advertisers and media companies that audits circulation numbers.
Over the years, many people have used the same expressions to describe both the daily and the city: orthodox, old-fashioned and conservative. However, Chennai has changed in the past two decades. In the 1990s, it emerged as a preferred car-making destination in the country and Hyundai Motor India Ltd and Ford India Pvt. Ltd have factories near the city. The Nissan-Renault combine will also soon have a factory near Chennai.
In the 2000s, it emerged a favourite with software firms and several of them have, or are building, their largest development centres in Siruseri, which is in the outskirts of Chennai.
All that has changed the demographic profile of the city and BCCL is hoping to cash in on that. In December, Kasturi and Sons launched Ergo, a free daily targeting young office- goers—largely those in the sof-tware and back-office business.
“TOI will be a pro-change newspaper in the city,” said Rahul Kansal, brand director, TOI. “The Chennai market is a wee bit underdeveloped.” He said TOI Chennai would have a strong local flavour. “The kind of people we have hired and the talent pool we are building will help us get the local flavour,” Kansal said. Apart from The Hindu, TOI will also have to compete with The New Indian Express—published by Express Publications (Madurai) Ltd—and The Deccan Chronicle (DC)—owned and published by Hyderabad-based Deccan Chronicle Holdings Ltd (DCHL). DC entered Chennai in March 2005.
Kansal refused to comment on the Chennai edition’s cover price. The Hindu’s Chennai edition is priced at Rs3.25. The New Indian Express and DC are priced at Rs1.50 each.
TOI’s launch is likely to shake Chennai’s relatively stable English newspaper market. Kasturi and Sons, however, is unfazed. “One need not fear or panic. The very fact that TOI took so long to come to Chennai is because this market is a hard nut to crack,” said N. Murali, joint managing director, Kasturi and Sons. He added that The Hindu expects thousands of its loyal readers to stand by it because of its commitment to “the core values of journalism”.
Analysts and experts say TOI’s launch may initially hurt DC and The New Indian Express, although the publishers of both papers say the situation won’t change much. “...There will be more competition, that’s all,” said P.K. Iyer, executive director (finance) at DCHL. He refused to comment on DC’s strategy to tackle competition from TOI. On Friday, The New Indian Express unveiled a new look.
According to ABC figures for July-December, DC crossed the 1-million mark in circulation to reach 1,003,170 copies, of which Chennai accounted for 256,918 copies.
Figures for The New Indian Express are still under consideration. However, during January-June, it had a total circulation of 278,243 copies, of which Chennai had 39,428.
TOI’s launch is likely to bring about a shift in the print advertising market in the city as well. An executive from a media buying agency, who did not wish to be named, said The Hindu, which has stringent advertising rates, might become more flexible with TOI’s entry.
TOI said it would offer bundled advertising packages. Discounts would be given for ads published in two editions simultaneously, Kansal added.
Over the past two years, DC has managed to build a significant base in Chennai largely on the basis of its price and Murali said he expects TOI’s launch to result in a price war.
“The Hindu is a secure brand with a set of high loyalty readers. But DC is the price warrior; it may take a call if it feels the heat. But all this depends on their business strategies,” said Kansal.
“There could be a price war between DC and TOI,” said Prakash Dharmarajan, president at advertising firm Ogilvy and Mather. “It is too early to comment (on this), but TOI’s pricing could be lower for they need to woo readers.”
However, media circles in Chennai were abuzz with rumours on Friday of a coming announcement from The Hindu regarding a price cut.
Mint is published by HT Media that competes with BCCL across several markets.

dis.agree

April 12th, 2008, 07:01 AM

Is over 90% of the builders in Chennai are greedy? These CMDA fellows are not above board.I suspect corruption levels have reached unsatiated levels in CMDA, hence the inordinate delays.There is no use talking of new projects in chennai with renderings delighting the forumers when the authorities here in chennai, who are supposed to give approval,:ohno: themselves become stumbling blocks.

agree cmda is not exactly the honest one. but beyond that i don't know how you infered the rest from this news. the renderings are mostly completed buildings. but news says they cannot start operations because cmda has not given approvals. why? because when they submit plans as per rules, many of them go ahead violate them. renderings that we see are not the ones they submit to cmda. even i could make out many of these buildings should be violations. although these are huge buildings adding upto 20 or 30 million sq ft, we are still talking about only 100 odd buildings. how do you explain 1000's of approval they would have given during this period.

Subra

April 12th, 2008, 09:15 PM

http://www.indiaprwire.com/businessnews/20080412/29294.htm

The central government has decided to set up a first-of-its-kind National Institute for Cancer in Chennai, said Health Minister Anbumani Ramdoss here Saturday.

'The Rs.5 billion ($125.2 million) institute will have research, service and education activities and will be the first-of-its-kind in India,' he told reporters on the sidelines of a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) seminar.

The institute will come up on 10 acres. This will be the second cancer institute in Chennai. The first one, Adyar Cancer Institute, was set up in 1954
Asked about the status of the Rs.4 billion vaccine and medical equipment park at Chengalpattu near here, Ramdoss said the preparatory work had started.

He added that 75 percent of the equipment made in the park would be sold in India, which in turn would bring down healthcare costs.

ranga

April 13th, 2008, 07:57 AM

agree cmda is not exactly the honest one. but beyond that i don't know how you infered the rest from this news. the renderings are mostly completed buildings. but news says they cannot start operations because cmda has not given approvals. why? because when they submit plans as per rules, many of them go ahead violate them. renderings that we see are not the ones they submit to cmda. even i could make out many of these buildings should be violations. although these are huge buildings adding upto 20 or 30 million sq ft, we are still talking about only 100 odd buildings. how do you explain 1000's of approval they would have given during this period.
But why does CMDA waits until the building is completed.If they are so strict about the so called rules to be adhered to by the builders they shud have stepped in and stopped further construction at the sight of the first violation or deviation from the sanctioned plan.They allow the building to be completed and pretend to impose penalty and collect huge sums in the name of granting permission.Do u know that a very sincere realestate company "Alacrity Foundation" perished just because they followed the rules meticulously and refused to pay bribes.My experience with the CMDA is horrible when compared to similar bodies in Bangaluru or Hyderabad.GOD SAVE THE BUILDERS IN CHENNAI particularly those who have set up shop recently.

chennaimetroblogs

April 13th, 2008, 06:33 PM

But why does CMDA waits until the building is completed.If they are so strict about the so called rules to be adhered to by the builders they shud have stepped in and stopped further construction at the sight of the first violation or deviation from the sanctioned plan.They allow the building to be completed and pretend to impose penalty and collect huge sums in the name of granting permission.Do u know that a very sincere realestate company "Alacrity Foundation" perished just because they followed the rules meticulously and refused to pay bribes.My experience with the CMDA is horrible when compared to similar bodies in Bangaluru or Hyderabad.GOD SAVE THE BUILDERS IN CHENNAI particularly those who have set up
shop recently.

true, I heard alacrity perished purely because of their in-ability to get projects sanctioned with out paying bribes. One only has to blame the CMDA for this. Things does move an inch with out bribes.

Heard DLf paid massive bribes to get their project sanctioned. I wont support the builders either. They are no saints.

Builder seemed to have learnt the art of cheating public and this is why CMDA thinks builders make enough money and why not part with some of the profits as bribes. And Builders think IT people make so much money, Why not suck some of that thro higher pricing.

Its a whole circle.

Who thought builders to start the project with out approval? - XS Real, DLF , Purva.

Jains is also slowing becoming a mischievous builder.

There are lot of instances where builders have cheated innocent public.

I would rather blame both builders and CMDA and its only we innocent buyers who sufffer in the end.

kannan infratech

April 14th, 2008, 12:06 PM

I have been reading the recent posts wrt planning permission & sanctions. Please understand that one has to be practical while looking at a problem. It is not practical for CMDA to monitor all the buildings coming up in Chennai on daily / weekly basis. CMDA gives a clearance and checks the actual construction just before giving the completion certificate.

I am not denyig that the CMDA is not holier than other depts of the Govt. But blaming 100% for all the delay on CMDA is wrong.

Many of you may not be aware of so many GOs, amendments, rules issued by the Govt from time to time. If CMDA engineer overlooks even one rule, he is taken to task by the next Govt, whereas the politicians escape. So the tendency has set in to find a safer but time consuming way for giving sanctions.

If masterplans and DCR are ready for the entire CMA region, it may help to some extent. Ambiguity is the norm of the day and transparency takes a back seat. CMDA Planners should be given a free hand first, but Govt can later prune their suggestions on its merit. The IRR and ORR are the products of CMDA and they are excellent except for the slower implementation, which is not by CMDA. Koyambedu Bus Stand is another CMDA project.

Upgrading the technical skills ( using the latest gadgets and softwares) of CMDA engineers to the latest technologies is a must so that the speed of checking the drawings is increased manifold.

Coming to builders, most of the builders may not start without sanction (except the few exceptions which have been discussed in Chennai Metroblogs and other forums). They may get part sanction (say G+3 or stilt+4 sanction first and then upgrade to higher floors). As it takes more time to get sanctions, builders start with part sanction. When they run into problem later, they are stuck.

As per the CMDA rules, one can not accept bookings and advance amount without getting the planning approval. This is to safeguard the general public.

PLease touch your hearts and think! How many of us bought unapproved plots or booked unapproved flats anticipating the higher returns in the future. We are also playing a part of the same system. All over the world, speed money is in existence and it may be called in different names.

On the whole, real estae sector is coming of age and due to foreign investments, more transparency has come and accountability is improving. Instaed of keep blaming the system and the people, we should strive for improving the system.

Subra

April 14th, 2008, 08:26 PM

Finally, good press about Chennai after the TOI launch :cheers:
----------------------------------------------------------------

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Chennai/Made_in_Chennai/articleshow/2951014.cms

Home to manufacturing giants & technology majors, the city is feeding the appetite of the global citizen today -
be it cars, computers or condoms.

The sun has set and offices in Delhi's Connaught Place are beginning to empty out. Rahul Kalra, a consultant with a head-hunting firm, is checking his email. He looks at the clock on his cellphone: 6.30 pm. He logs off, shuts down his PC and goes to the men's room. Looking into the mirror, he combs his hair, practises a smile and goes down to the parking lot to get into his car.

You can't be sure what's on Kalra's mind as he is driving home, but one thought is most likely to escape him: that most things he can't do without today come from Chennai. His car, a Santro, is made in Chennai. The Nokia handset, which told him the time is made in Chennai. The Dell desktop, which he just shut down, is also made in Chennai. So is the Saint-Gobain mirror he looked into moments ago. And the Samsung TV he is going to switch on once he is home - that is also made in Chennai.

Rahul Kalra isn't real. He could be a Sumit Bose in Kolkata or a Sandeep Desai in Mumbai. What is real is that he represents the young global Indian who aspires for a good life. He could be someone who never set foot in Chennai and has no links with the city - not even a distant relative - and yet, he has a strong 'Chennai connection'. Even the lingerie his girlfriend or wife dreams of buying someday, thanks to Fashion TV, is most likely to be made-in-Chennai: one-sixth of the bras sold by Victoria's Secret are currently manufactured in a factory on the outskirts of the city.

The 'Chennai connection' is going to get even stronger as more and more multinational companies descend on the city to set up their plants and back offices. Most of them are already here now: Nokia, Flextronics, Motorola, Hyundai, Samsung, Dell, Caparo, Saint-Gobain, Foxconn, Perlos, Jabil, Salcomp, Laird, Wintek, Ford, Moser Baer, Accenture, IBM, Delphi... The list is as mind-boggling as the line-up of musicians who descend on the city during margazhi, the music season in December.

BUT WHY CHENNAI?
"The availability of skilled labour force, a friendly business environment, excellent state government support, competitive cost level and good logistics connections, like airport, harbour and highway, availability of suitable piece of land - these are the factors that made us choose Chennai as a manufacturing destination," says Sachin Saxena, operations director of Nokia India. Nokia, which found Chennai cheaper than China by 11%, produced 125 million handsets in just over two years of operations in Chennai.

The Mercer cost of living survey in March last year rated the cost of living index in Chennai as 63.7, while Mumbai, New Delhi and Shanghai were way ahead at 84.9, 82.3 and 91.2, respectively. Little wonder that Samsung, which started making colour televisions in Chennai last year, plans to gradually shift the manufacturing of other consumer durables from Noida to the city.

"Apart from the attractive cost proposition, there is also a blend of proper culture and value systems among the people here," says K S Srikumar, vice-president (marketing) of iSmart, a leading 'strategic sourcing' service provider in the country.

"The huge success of the automobile industry and infotech companies shows people here are dedicated and loyal to organizations," he says. "Even though we have delivery centres in Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore and Colombo, our Chennai centre is very special for iSmart because of the positive work culture and the strong bonding and loyalty that develops between the employer and the employees."

In the past 20 months alone, the Tamil Nadu government has signed MoUs with 12 globally-known companies for setting up manufacturing facilities worth Rs 15,000 crore. Of these, substantial investments were made in the electronic and automobile sectors. The most prestigious project in the pipeline is the Rs 4,500-crore joint venture between Renault of France and Nissan of Japan. It will be capable of manufacturing 4,00,000 vehicles annually.

Most of the plants are based in Sriperumbudur, 40 km from Chennai on the highway to Bangalore. The state government has set up a sector-specific hi-tech special economic zone there over an area of 468.74 acres, of which 351.85 acres have been allotted to companies like Dell, Samsung, Motorola, Foxconn, and TAPP Semiconductors to set up their manufacturing plants. And to think, only a few years ago, Sriperumbudur was mentioned only in the context of Rajiv Gandhi's death. Today, land prices there are said to be touching Rs 1.5 crore an acre.

Chennai, meanwhile, has found its place under the global sun. Plush restaurants rub shoulders with half-built flyovers, the frowns over an escalating cost of living are overshadowed by the smiles of good living.

For North Indians, Chennai is no longer a 'punishment posting': they are willingly coming here to further their careers. A city born in 1639 as a strip of sand three miles long and one mile wide (acquired from the governors of Poonamallee by two East India Company employees, Francis Day and Andrew Cogan) has clearly come a long way.

For long Chennai's charms have remained hidden behind the image of a conservative city wedded to culture and tradition. Travel writers largely ignored it, confining themselves to Delhi, Bombay or Calcutta.

James Cameron, the celebrated British journalist who spent a lot of time in India right from the 1945 Simla Conference to the 1971 Bangladesh war, was among the few who found a level of comfort in Chennai. "I have a sort of trust in Madras," Cameron says in his book, An Indian Summer, "It is an agreeable, rather boring place; it is the sort of place I would be if I were a town."

Multinational companies seem to have discovered that trust. And thanks to them, business writers are now flocking to the city, telling the world that Chennai is not just about music and dance and idli-dosa but has grown into a throbbing global manufacturing hub.

Back to Mr Kalra. It's almost midnight and he is preparing to hit the sack. Suddenly, he gets into a naughty mood. He reaches for the bedside drawer and pulls out a packet of condoms. The brand turns out to be Inspiral - made in Chennai!

IN THE PIPELINE
MoUs with 12 global companies to set up Rs 15,000-crore manufacturing facilities
Rs 4,500-crore joint venture between Renault and Nissan. It will manufacture 400,000 vehicles annually
Hi-tech SEZ at Sriperumbudur. Dell, Samsung, Motorola, Foxconn and TAPP Semiconductor to set up shop

OUR USP
Skilled labour
Friendly business environment
Competitive cost level
Availability of land
Low cost of living
Cultured city
Dedicated, loyal workforce
State govt support

PlaneMad

April 14th, 2008, 09:10 PM

^^ They have done a good job of licking the governments ass inside out and also giving chennai folk the feel good factor. nice marketing ploy.

Now let them publish this article in all the other editions instead of telling this city something it already knows.

chennaimetroblogs

April 14th, 2008, 09:36 PM

Chennai: It’s long been one of Detroit’s Big 3 (along with General Motors and Ford). Lee Iacocca became a business icon after he successfully helmed its turnaround. Brands owned by it include the legendary Plymouth, Dodge and the original Jeep. And now, it’s driving into the city’s ITES (infotechenabled services) space.
According to people close to the development, Chrysler is setting up an 80,000 sq ft ITES operation in RMZ Millenia IT park in south Chennai. This will be Chrysler’s first operation in India. The exact nature of the proposed centre’s operations is still not clear, but it is expected to strengthen Chennai’s claim of being among the best locations for automobilesrelated ITES globally.
“We have been told that Chrysler’s call centre operations would be for their customers. They have initially taken 20,000 square feet and have signed agreements to take another 60,000 square feet. Their operations alone would attract 800 staffers,” official sources at RMZ Millenia Park said.
The centre would do work both for Chrysler Motors and its arm, Chrysler Financial, sources added.

SLOT SHOPPING

Tax sops to sweeten ITeS lease deals in city

Chennai: The ITeS sector continues to strike major leasing deals in Chennai. Oil giant Shell has taken up one lakh sq ft in RMZ Millenia IT Park for its captive BPO. Construction equipment major Caterpillar is doubling its presence by taking up a further one lakh sq ft which will be used for design and logistics services.
Among the other big ticket real estate deals, Satyam has signed up a four lakh sq ft space in Shriram Group’s Gateway in Perungulathur. Logica and Citigroup too have signed up for 1.40 lakh and 1.50 lakh sq ft, respectively, for their Chennai operations. They will start operations from DLF Park near Porur. “All these deals have crossed the LoI and MoU stage and have either been signed or are on the verge of being signed,” sources added.
Looking at the overall picture, the first three months of the current year saw around 1.50 million sq ft of space being leased, said industry sources. During the corresponding period last year, 2.16 million sq ft of space were leased out. The main reasons for the drop in activity are lack of-clarity on tax benefits for STPI units, oversupply and the effect of the rupee’s appreciation against the dollar on smaller software companies.
“There has been a fall in occupancy levels, but not as much as we thought it would be. For this year, we expect some 6.50 million sq ft of IT space and 0.30 million sq ft of non-IT space to be absorbed,” said R Rajesh Babu, chief consultant, RECS Group.
On the rentals side, there has been a drop of 25% to 30% in the past year. “The region beyond Perungudi where the IT corridor starts, saw deals getting signed at Rs 32 a sq ft this quarter as against Rs 38 a year ago,” said Tirumal Govindarajan of CBRE, a real estate consultancy firm.
Most investments in this space by IT companies were delayed as the fate of tax benefits for software firms was not known. With the government clarifying on Friday that the rebate would continue for another year, a definite trend will emerge in the forthcoming quarters.

vijayvmail

April 14th, 2008, 11:13 PM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/15/stories/2008041550310100.htm

I guess it'll be another year and a half for any actual ground-work to start. We'll have to see how they're going to handle all the settlements along the banks of the river. They're major vote banks and any disruptions would cause an uproar and delay the project indefinitely.

Hopefully, this is executed properly without major issues. It is a good ambitious project.

vijayvmail

April 14th, 2008, 11:18 PM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/15/stories/2008041554420500.htm

It'll be nice to have such a huge green space in the center of the city - near one of the busiest junctions.

The drive-in hotel has been there for quite a long time and i'm sure many chennaites, especially the ones around the area feel sad about its closure.

Similarly the agricultural society was one of the few places inside the city where we can get good saplings at affordable prices. I've gone there so many times with my father to get small plants and manure for our really small garden. Hope the new botanical garden has a small nursery within it where we can continue to buy plants.

Babji

April 15th, 2008, 03:13 AM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/15/stories/2008041550310100.htm

... Hopefully, this is executed properly without major issues. It is a good ambitious project.

... build a dedicated carriageway on both sides of the river for a Bus Rapid Transport System (BRTS) to reduce traffic congestion. From Ramapuram to Porur-Poonamallee, the BRTS would be on an elevated corridor that would connect with the Chennai bypass (Maduravoyal to Manali). The total stretch from the Adyar to Porur is approximately 11.5 km. The cost per km will be about Rs. 40 crore.
11.5 km stretch of BRTS on an elevated track. cool!

satsukhoi

April 15th, 2008, 06:51 AM

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOICH/2008/04/15/6/Img/Pc0060800.jpg
THE ARCHITECT’S VISION: This is how the proposed Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly will look like after completion. The design has taken into account Tamil cultural traditions as well as Chennai’s urban context with a glass dome for the Assembly Hall

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOICH/2008/04/15/6/Img/Pc0060700.jpg

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily/skins/TOI/navigator.asp?Daily=TOICH&login=default

Arul Murugan

April 15th, 2008, 08:12 AM

^^

Good iconic building for Tamilnadu and Chennai.

But there is nothing to replica for Tamilnadu traditional architecture.

Madurai

April 15th, 2008, 08:31 AM

^^

Yes, I too feel the same. The Building looks modern and well planned ( at least from the high level plan being shown on this) but there doesn't seem to be any cultural aspects visible in this.

Raj_network

April 15th, 2008, 08:37 AM

^^^^

http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/6209/chennaistorypickn8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img404.imageshack.us/img404/4672/chennaiparliamenthdrac8.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

German Architects design Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly Complex

German architect GMP has won the provincial government of Tamil Nadu’s international invitation to tender for the design of the new state parliament building in Chennai. The project is due to be completed by 2010.

GMP is a united venture of Meinhard von Gerkan and Volkwin Marg, who have planned and realized buildings in almost all major cities in Germany. The duo is famous worldwide for their magnificent designs in countries like Russia and China.

The design of the parliament building takes account of the state's cultural traditions as well as the urban context of the city of Chennai. With its highly visible dome, the design echoes the structural features of Dravidian temple complexes in south India.

The geometry of the complex’s structure is derived from the traditional, round chakra or mandala motif, consisting of circles of various sizes inscribed in 36 isosceles triangles. These basic shapes make up the geometrical structure of the entire design in both ground plan and elevation.

The internal plan features courtyard architecture with five round interior courts that are functionally differentiated, creating public, semi-public and also secure internal areas.

The spacious Citizens' Forum on the south side of the building is created by the largest circle in the mandala. It is both the opening towards the city and the entrance area, with public functional areas.

The three other round courtyards in the interior of the building house the Assembly Hall, the Legislative Assembly Chamber and the Convention Hall.

The state parliament rests on a battered plinth and is landscaped all round. The glass dome over the Assembly Hall marks the seat of the Tamil parliament.

http://www.german-info.com/gsa_shownews.php?pid=26

Raj_network

April 15th, 2008, 08:55 AM

deleted

greatshankar

April 15th, 2008, 09:46 AM

TOI and GIC Website has different design pictures!!?!? (Dome)

ANANTH

April 15th, 2008, 09:52 AM

The proposed complex looks modern and different. But I also couldnt link it with tamil.

MaduraiSelvam

April 15th, 2008, 12:23 PM

A small portion of the building has it. Central assembly has a glass doom that might look like dravidian temple complex:nuts:

i-Design

April 15th, 2008, 12:29 PM

ANANTH

April 15th, 2008, 01:31 PM

As per information provided by L & T to Bombay stock exchange, L&T have signed a JV agreement with TIDCO to build a shipyard cum port complex near ennore with an investment of RS 3000 Crores. The agreement was signed in the presence of Tamilnadu CM. The work is likely to start by the end of 2008 and will be over in 24 months. Feasibility report is already completed. Proposed Shipyard complex will include facilities for commercial ship building including Very Large Cargo Carriers, specialized cargo ships for liquid / gas transportation and cruise vessels. It will also have the capability to build vessels for the Defence sector, off-shore platforms & floating production cum storage facilities for the Oil & Gas sector.

wcgokul

April 15th, 2008, 02:54 PM

Larsen & Toubro Ltd (L&T) has announced that the Company and Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation Ltd (TIDCO) have signed a joint venture agreement to set up an integdrated Shipyard Complex of global standards with a port facility and a total investment of about Rs 3000 crore in the Kattupalli village, near Ennore in Tiruvallur District of Tamil Nadu.

The joint venture agreement to set up the project was signed in Chennai on April 15, 2008 in the presence of the Hon'ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Dr. Kalaignar M Karunanidhi and L&T's Chairman and Managing Director, Mr. A M Naik. The JV agreement was signed by Mr. S Ramasundaram, IAS, Chairman and Managing Director, TIDCO, and Mr. K V Rangaswami, Member of the Board and President (Construction), L&T.

The feasibility report for the project has been completed. Necessary environment studies are under progress. Construction will start by the end of 2008, and the project will be completed in 24 months.

The proposed Shipyard complex will include facilities for commercial ship building including Very Large Cargo Carriers, specialized cargo ships for liquid / gas transportation and cruise vessels. It will also have the capability to build vessels for the Defence sector, off-shore platforms & floating production cum storage facilities for the Oil & Gas sector.

The Shipyard will also have the facilities for refitting and re-engineering of commercial and Defence vessels, and heavy engineering fabrication and components production for ship building purposes.

The shipyard complex will promote several ancillary units for manufacture of components & spares for this Shipyard, and for exports. When it becomes operational, the Shipyard will become a nucleus for the heavy engineering industry (for fabrications and components manufacturing).

L&T selected the Tamil Nadu site for this project based on its suitability, the investor friendly policies of the Tamil Nadu Govt. and the availability of large pool of technically qualified and skilled manpower in the state. This project has significant employment potential.

The Larsen & Toubro Group is a USD 7 billion technology, engineering and construction Company, with global operations. It is one of the largest and most respected Companies in India's private sector.

A strong, customer-focused approach and the constant quest for top-class quality have enabled L&T to attain and sustain leadership in its major lines of business over seven decades.

It has played a critical role in the development of indigenous technologies and capabilities in various sectors, and has contributed to the development of the country's defence capabilities, infrastructure, cement manufacturing capacities, nuclear power, oil & gas, petroleum sectors, to list a few for the purpose of illustration.

Shipping has historically been a measure of a nation's economic success. This requires world class vessels to compete with countries that have got ahead of us.

L&T's foray into shipbuilding is expected to bridge the gap between India's shipbuilding industry and that in developed countries, and will result in a paradigm shift in the shipbuilding capabilities in the country

http://www.equitybulls.com/admin/news2006/news_det.asp?id=28018

R2IChennai

April 15th, 2008, 07:08 PM

Fusionist

April 15th, 2008, 07:46 PM

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOICH/2008/04/15/6/Img/Pc0060700.jpg

Its based on the Chakra model.

http://www.celestialhealing.net/websitestuff/chakra.jpg

Sri Chakra

http://karunamayi.org/AmmaStore/images/P/sphatika-sri-chakra-large.jpg

I wouldn't be surprised if the inside of the Assembley looks somewehat like this image below..

http://bhagavadgitausa.com.cnchost.com/SRIYANTRA.gif

Subra

April 15th, 2008, 07:58 PM

http://www.equitybulls.com/admin/news2006/news_det.asp?id=28018

Great news after a lot of speculation. :cheers:

How far is Kattupalli from Ennore port ? Since L and T is involved, this has a potential to become a major port in the future. Can we have 2 major ports side by side ? Curious why L and T is keen to develop its own port rather than using the Ennore port.

jyas

April 15th, 2008, 08:12 PM

There shouldn't be a problem having 2 major ports side by side. Look Mumbai port and JNPT.

Great news after a lot of speculation. :cheers:

How far is Kattupalli from Ennore port ? Since L and T is involved, this has a potential to become a major port in the future. Can we have 2 major ports side by side ? Curious why L and T is keen to develop its own port rather than using the Ennore port.

Subra

April 15th, 2008, 09:39 PM

http://www.business-standard.com/common/news_article.php?autono=320247&leftnm=1&subLeft=0&chkFlg=

Toshiba is planning to set up a facility either in Tamil Nadu or Gujarat to manufacture supercritical steam turbines of upto 1,000 mw capacity, sources said.

A Toshiba official said the investment required for the turbine manufacturing joint venture could be around $200 million.

slakhs

April 15th, 2008, 10:08 PM

Or closer home, Chennai and Ennore :)

However, I think L&T would be a captive port for the shipbuilding operation rather than being an independent port.

Slakhs

There shouldn't be a problem having 2 major ports side by side. Look Mumbai port and JNPT.

vijayvmail

April 15th, 2008, 11:10 PM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/16/stories/2008041650140100.htm

Hope land aquisition does not delay the project.

Do they have any logo or design like the bangalore metro?

Raj_network

April 15th, 2008, 11:27 PM

From TOI.

That's the name given by the German architects who've designed the hip new Assembly building, which is a fusion of temple architecture and urban aesthetics. B Aravind Kumar provides a sneak peek.

Transparency in lawmaking is set to achieve a different meaning. Seated inside a massive glass dome and illumined by natural light streaming in from above, Tamil Nadu's legislators will soon debate and enact laws in an Assembly building based on a futuristic design.

The new seat of political power will be in sharp contrast to the old-worldly Fort St George, which harks back to a colonial past. Unlike the 17th century citadel with its Indo-Saracenic interiors embellished with rosewood and grand crystal chandeliers, the architecture for the new complex blends classical Tamil traditions with urban aesthetics.

The German firm, Gerkan, Marg und Partner (GMP), that also designed the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in Delhi, has come up with an eclectic plan that fuses the visual feel of a modern urban complex with elements from a temple precinct. Architects say the design takes into account "Tamil cultural traditions as well as Chennai's urban context."

TOI has exclusive access to the blueprint of the proposed building (see illustration). Its neo-eclectic style combines the 'mandala' motif with the geometry of temple complexes as characterised by circles and triangles. "It will consist of five circles of various sizes inscribed in 36 isosceles triangles," said GMP spokesperson Alina Sotkowska. "These timeless stable shapes – circles and triangles – make up the geometrical structure in both ground plan and elevation."

Spread over 1,60,000 square metres (approximately 40 acres), the 'Tamil Parliament' - as the German architects describe the legislature - will come up in the Omandurar Government Estate, a complex in the heart of Anna Salai and redolent with a century of political memories. A few old buildings like the six-storeyed MLA Hostel will be pulled down to accommodate the seven-storeyed complex. The largest 'mandala' or segment in the edifice will be the citizens' forum on the south side of the building which will open out into the city with facilities for visitors. A new Assembly building was a longheld dream of both Chief Minister M Karunanidhi and ex-CM J Jayalalithaa. Since the present complex is located on land owned by the defence ministry, both leaders had been keen on developing an independent facility. Plans had hit a note of controversy following Jayalalithaa's decision some years back to raze the century-old Queen Mary's College for Women to build a new complex which she claimed "would be grander than the Vidhan Soudha." The then CM had also planned a helipad above the complex.
However, students and activists protested and she hurriedly backtracked and proposed a new site near Anna University. After her term ended in May 2006, Karunanidhi was quick to revive the plan.

When bids were invited last year, about 25 architects had evinced interest. Nine were shortlisted, and of these, three submitted designs. A five-member evaluation committee, which included architects, then chose the design of the Berlin-based GMP ahead of Burt, Hill and CRN Rao, Chennai.

A GMP team is expected in the city soon to finalise the design. Two years from now, when the complex is unveiled, the DMK chief can hope to take credit for gifting the city a new architectural landmark.

Will it be a museum?
What will happen to the Fort House, the seat of the present Assembly inside Fort St George, the first British occupied land, around which the city of Chennai has grown up over the three-and-a-half centuries?
Once the Assembly shifts to the 'Tamil Parliament' in a few years, the Fort House, a marvel in military architecture, will be taken over by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).

For years, ASI's Chennai Circle has been writing to its headquarters about the problem of preserving the Fort House as a monument, given the large number of visitors coming to the Secretariat and Assembly. The ASI has no plans at present but does not want it to get occupied. "We may turn it into a museum," said an ASI officer.

Putting a plan in place

May 12, 2007
During a felicitation ceremony held to mark the golden jubilee of his legislative career, Chief Minister M Karunanidhi brings up the issue in the presence of Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee. The CM announces the construction of the long-awaited assembly complex and promises to expedite the plan within a few years.

July 8, 2007
The public works department releases a global tender. The advertisement is published in newspapers and magazines including some abroad. Receives nine applications but only three architects submit designs. A govt expert committee begins evaluation.

Oct 29, 2007
Chief Minister studies the three designs submitted by the architects, GMP, Germany; CRN, Chennai and Burt, Hill, US. All three draw heavily on temple architecture. Karunanidhi selects the German firm.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Chennai/Soon_a_new_Tamil_Parliament/articleshow/2952739.cms

Raj_network

April 15th, 2008, 11:55 PM

http://www.dinamalar.com/Arasiyalnewsdetail.asp?News_id=907&cls=row4&ncat=TN

News says that CM called for meeting to discuss abt the bridges in Chennai.

Light house - Besant Nager Elevated bridge

Harbour - Madhuravayil Elevated bridge

Roads along the bank of the chennai rivers

devind

April 16th, 2008, 12:44 AM

Here is the link to design
http://www.gmp-architekten.de/index.php?id=4&L=1&tx_mimpdb_pi1[showUid]=379&tx_mimpdb_pi1[typological]=1&tx_mimpdb_pi1[filter_typology]=8&cHash=3bc2fe0302
[QUOTE=Raj_network;19696564]From TOI.

That's the name given by the German architects who've designed the hip new Assembly building, which is a fusion of temple architecture and urban aesthetics. B Aravind Kumar provides a sneak peek.

Subra

April 16th, 2008, 01:47 AM

Great news after a lot of speculation. :cheers:

How far is Kattupalli from Ennore port ? Since L and T is involved, this has a potential to become a major port in the future. Can we have 2 major ports side by side ? Curious why L and T is keen to develop its own port rather than using the Ennore port.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/16/stories/2008041660370800.htm

L&T chairman and managing director, who had just committed himself to build the largest shipyard in south Asia near Chennai. Once functional, the company will also be the largest employer in a single unit in the manufacturing sector in the State.

wcgokul

April 16th, 2008, 03:41 AM

The Tamil Nadu government on Tuesday announced that the houses to be built by the Tamil Nadu Housing Board (TNHB) from this year would incorporate the Green Building concept.

Revenue and Housing Minister I Periyasamy, speaking on the grants for his department in the state Assembly, said, "the buildings would be constructed with a view to making maximum use of available sunlight and other natural elements (such as wind) according to the Green Building concept."

This would enable the inmates of the houses live in a naturally healthy atmosphere, he added.

The government would come up with an Integrated Township here, which would accommodate one lakh people, on the lines of the satellite city proposed near Chennai but was dropped subsequently following PMK's opposition. The proposed township would also have educational institutions, community halls, parks and other facilities.

"This township would come up by 2013 at a cost of Rs 814.85 crore with 20,000 residential buildings," he said without mentioning where it would come up.

Among other announcements, Periyasamy said that Rs 2000 crore would be invested in the construction of 22,000 multi-storeyed tenements in Chennai, Coimbatore, Salem, Erode, Madurai, Krishnagiri and Tirunelveli, where members from lower and middle income groups would be given priority for accommodation.

To ensure a slums-free Chennai, seven-storeyed residential complexes would be constructed in the city and slum-dwellers would be rehabilated there, he said.

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/004200804160326.htm

wcgokul

April 16th, 2008, 03:42 AM

i only hope that this time over .the housing board dwellings are liveable..............!!!

satsukhoi

April 16th, 2008, 06:37 AM

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOICH/2008/04/16/7/Img/Ad0070308.png

Source: Timesofindia

satsukhoi

April 16th, 2008, 06:40 AM

Times News Network

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOICH/2008/04/16/7/Img/Pc0070800.jpg

Chennai: The state government on Tuesday gave the go-ahead for two more elevated expressways in the city -- one over the Adyar creek, and another along the Cooum river for port connectivity.
One of the elevated expressways will connect Light House in Marina with Elliots Beach in Besant Nagar over the Adyar creek -- a distance of 4.7 km. At present, 38,400 cars passing through the narrow Santhome High Road and Greenways Road instead of 3,600 cars per hour. As a result, traffic moves at 20 km an hour. Since there are nine schools on Santhome Road, it get even slower during the schools’ opening and closing hours. Once the expressway is in place, it should not take more than five minutes to cover the distance.
After highways department officials made the presentation, chief minister M Karunanidhi gave his nod to the Rs 338-crore project and asked them to start work in accordance with the Coastal Regulation Zone rules.
He also asked them to co-ordinate with the National Highways Authority of India to speed up the Rs 1468-crore elevated expressway project connecting Maduravoyal to the Chennai Port along the Cooum River. The chief minister asked them to speed up the acquisition of land for this project, which would cover
24.31 km. It would heavily cut down the travel time and fuel costs for heavy vehicles headed to the Chennai port. The project is taken up under the “port connectivity” programme under the National Highways Development Programme.
The BOT operator will bring in 50 percent of the total cost. The state government and the Chennai Port Trust have already decided to share the cost of land acquisition and resettlement and rehabilitation of people located along the Coovum River.
As the density of settlements in the form of kutcha, semi-pucca and pucca buildings, a mix of slums and resettlement units, the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board will be the nodal agency for the State Government to co-ordinate with the NHAI for completing the resettlement work within a time period.
By 2013, the city will have an integrated transport system with a seamless connection of different modes of transport systems, connecting Metro Rail, BRTS, MRTS, EMUs and MTC stations, facilitating faster movement within the city and its outskirts

Arul Murugan

April 16th, 2008, 07:24 AM

Friends,

Can we post the metro rail news in Chennai Metro topic thread in Infrastructure and Economy folder?

peaceonearth

April 16th, 2008, 05:20 PM

Chennai, April 16 (IANS) US-based Timken Company’s wholly owned subsidiary Timken India Manufacturing Private Limited plant was inaugurated Wednesday in Mahindra World City Special Economic Zone (SEZ) near Chennai. The $25 million plant’s initial capacity will be 310,000 units and will be increased to 420,000 units per year by April 2009, said Sanjay Sinha, general manager.

http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/business/us-based-timken-starts-new-plant-near-chennai_10038603.html

Illusionist

April 16th, 2008, 07:27 PM

good find fusionist and devind...
check out some other projects they are doing in india..
some of them look very cool.

nsantha2

April 16th, 2008, 07:56 PM

vijayvmail

April 16th, 2008, 09:21 PM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/17/stories/2008041754510500.htm

A lot of things have started late in Chennai - Metro project, Airport projects etc.

Is it because Chennai was initially able to handle the surge in demand while other cities like Bangalore were struggling to cope up? I remember reading reports 4-5 years back that described the infrastructure woes of Bangalore. And finally they would add a line "While Chennai is now able to handle the increased demand, proper steps should be taken now to ensure that the city does not go the Bangalore way in thenext few years." Looks like it has come true.

jyas

April 16th, 2008, 10:27 PM

Cathay Pacific is to launch a four times a week flight to Chennai from Hong Kong in June this year while its 100 per cent subsidiary, Dragonair, will operate a daily service to Bangalore from Hong Kong in May this year, the airline’s Chief Executive Officer, Mr Tony Tyler, said on Wednesday.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/04/17/stories/2008041750300700.htm

slakhs

April 16th, 2008, 11:37 PM

A Video of the Kathipara Flyover in use

http://www.chennaionline.com/video/index.aspx?vid=196

Raj_network

April 17th, 2008, 02:46 AM

A total of 18
such lamps are being set up across the city

CHENNAI: With the removal of the hoardings leading to diminished illumination on the Anna Flyover, two new high-mast lamps would be installed in keeping with requests from the public.

According to a press release, Mayor M. Subramanian inspected several areas and ordered immediate installation of high-mast lamps at the spot.
The lamps would be installed at the cost of Rs.13 lakh.

A total of 18 high-mast lamps are being set up across the city with one each on Nelson Manickam Road, opposite the War Memorial, Thiruvanmiyur Beach, Kannigapuram Corporation Playground and at the ten Corporation crematoria and two at Panagal Park.

The lamps are being set up at the cost of Rs.1.08 crore.

New streetlights would be set up at various locations at the cost of over Rs.20 crore, the press release said.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/17/stories/2008041760720400.htm

Raj_network

April 17th, 2008, 02:47 AM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/17/stories/2008041760110300.htm

satsukhoi

April 17th, 2008, 06:21 AM

Space-crunched city to get a VERTICAL SOLUTION
Chennai: When a promotion and a handsome hike enabled Rajesh, a software professional, to get his favourite Honda City, he couldn’t stop showing the car off. But within months, his enthusiasm had died down: taking the car out was becoming painful. “Why do you need a car? To take your family out on weekends or for shopping. But finding a place to park was becoming a Himalayan task. It is better to travel in an autorickshaw than keep worrying about the car,” says Rajesh.
Chennai, the Detroit of South Asia where several auto majors have set up shops, might take pride in rolling out 3.75 lakh cars every year. But its residents are running out of place to park. According to the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority, a total of 26.5 lakh vehicles, including 5 lakh four-wheelers, ply on city roads. After planning flyovers and expressways to ease traffic congestion, the government seems to have woken up to the fact that people need places to park too.
The announcement by local administration minister M K Stalin on Wednesday that multi-level car parking lots would come up in three heavily congested areas might spell some relief to Chennaiites, who have a harrowing time at the shopping malls and restaurants every evening. Chennai Corporation Commissioner Rajesh Lakhoni said the parking lots, to be built at Broadway bus stand, Ritchie Street and near Greams Road, would have a capacity of about 500 cars each.
The Corporation’s consultant, CRISIL, was doing a detailed analysis of the project and expected to submit its report in a week. The project would be built on a build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis for which bids would be invited within a month, he added. The construction will take between nine to 12 months to complete and at least one parking facility is expected to be operational in a year.
“The multi-level car parking lots will be based on mechanised system where in cars will be lifted to the parking place. As the parking lots are planned to be up to 10 storeys, the ramp system is deemed unadvisable,” Lakhoni said. He said the estimated cost of each facility would be a minimum of Rs 20 crore, though the exact design and capacity might vary depending upon the space availability in each place.
Ritchie Street, a vibrant electronic market attracting hundreds of people everyday, is located just a few km away from the proposed Assembly complex in the government estate in Chepauk. Broadway, again, is a huge business district. Greams Road, on the other hand, witnesses heavy traffic because it is lined by numerous commercial establishments and hospitals.
The charges would be based on the telescopic system, where more hours of parking would cost less. For economic viability, commercial establishments would also be accommodated in the facilities.
The corporation, which has 120 parking lots on various road, charges Rs 3-5 per vehicle, thus earning a revenue of Rs 1.5 crore per annum.

No. of vehicles in city (Mar ’08) = 26 lakh

Two-wheelers (Mar ’08) = 20.2 lakh

Four-wheelers (Mar ’08) = 4.88 lakh

No. of new vehicles added every day = 680

No. of new vehicles added (07-08) = 5.8 lakh

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOICH/2008/04/17/2/Img/Pc0020500.jpg
http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOICH/2008/04/17/2/Img/Pc0021100.jpg

Raj_network

April 18th, 2008, 03:43 AM

http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/5965/tblarasiyalnews21195185ex0.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://www.dinamalar.com/Arasiyalnewsdetail.asp?News_id=954&cls=row3&ncat=TN

Total space : 320 Ground

Land Cost : >1000 Crs (as per Govt. rate)

In Hindu :

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/18/stories/2008041859960500.htm

Drive-in land to be developed a la Lalbagh

Raj_network

April 18th, 2008, 06:08 AM

http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IE920080416234326&Page=9&Title=Chennai&Topic=0&

CHENNAI: TECH Mahindra, an IT services provider to the telecom industry, has entered the Ascendas- Mahindra IT Park in the Mahindra World City near Chennai, occupying an area of 1,20,000 sq ft in the 18- acre park.

At present, about 17 of the 40 companies that have occupied space within the 1,400 acre Mahindra City, have become operational. US auto ancillary The Timken Company, Mindtree Consulting, Sundaram Clayton and Renault and Nissan became operational within the last one month.

Within the next six months, IT companies Capgemini (25 acre), Mastek (15 acre),Wipro (90 acre) and Helios and Matheson (25,000 sq ft) are expected to go on stream. The City is expected to be fully occupied within the next three years, generate exports worth USD 1 billion and provide direct employment to 60,000 people.

The BPO operations that would start later in the year would primarily service BT’s requirements. Tech Mahindra has invested Rs 30 crore in the facility funded through internal accruals.

Raj_network

April 18th, 2008, 06:16 AM

http://www.newkerala.com/one.php?action=fullnews&id=49324

New Delhi, April 17: A bill seeking to set up a new maritime university in Chennai was moved in parliament Thursday.

"The Indian Maritime University Bill, 2007, was presented in parliament. The bill seeks to establish and incorporate a teaching and affiliating university at Chennai with its campuses at Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Vishakapatnam," Sitaram Yechury, MP and head of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture, told reporters.

The university will facilitate and promote maritime studies and research, and strive to achieve excellence in areas of marine science and technology, marine environment and other related fields.

Yechury said the 31 members of the standing committee had done a comprehensive study of the likely places where the university could be established. It felt that there was a need to establish more maritime universities to meet the need of students but this was not possible due to the lack of funds.

The committee has suggested that full-fledged universities should be established in the future at Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai and Visakhapatnam

Raj_network

April 18th, 2008, 06:18 AM

^^^^ from another source :

http://www.newkerala.com/one.php?action=fullnews&id=48690

Chennai, April 16 : Tech Mahindra, a software company of the Mahindra & Mahindra group, has set up a new Rs.300 million development centre at Mahindra World City in Paranur, near Chennai.

The company, with revenue of $648 million, will initially house about 400 software engineers at the centre. Tech Mahindra plans to expand it, both in size and investments, over the next 3-4 years.

The company will leverage the new facility to expand its telecom research and development (R&D) businesses, development of its telecom application business and servicing global telecom equipment manufacturers and telecom services providers.

Tech Mahindra vice chairman, managing director and CEO Vineet Nayyar said that the new centre would be integral to the expansion of the company's service offerings and delivery capabilities.

The company's other six centres are located in NOIDA (Uttar Pradesh), Pune and Mumbai (Maharashtra), Kolkata, Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Raj_network

April 18th, 2008, 06:20 AM

Chennai, April 16 : The city based Startek Shipyards Pvt Ltd will shortly finalise the location for its second shipyard.

Deepak Rao Beedu, executive director, told IANS: "We are looking at Chennai and two other locations south of Chennai. As the discussions are in the final stages, I am not in a position to divulge more."

Currently manufacturing inland waterway dredgers at its Manali facility in Chennai, Startek wants the new facility near the sea so that it can manufacture bigger vessels like tugs, barges, workboats and offshore supply vessels.

The new facility would involve an outlay of Rs.400 million and requires five acres of land.

Promoted by Beedu and Biren Mukherjee, Startek has a turnover of Rs.110 million.

For tugs, Startek is targeting the overseas market while in the barges segment it will be aiming at the niche sectors like oil carriers and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder carriers.

The company has already booked orders for two barges from the Shipping Corporation of India (SCI) and two tugs from the Mauritius Port Authority.

The company's order book position is Rs.650 million requiring around two years for completion.

"The demand is now buoyant thanks to the development of minor ports, inland waterways cleaning projects as well as setting up of new power plants.

"Till last year, the demand for small machines used to be just two or three units. But in the last three months, we have booked orders for five dredgers," said Beedu.

http://www.newkerala.com/one.php?action=fullnews&id=48688

cure

April 18th, 2008, 06:49 AM

Rakindo also plans to build a first of its kind marina outside Chennai on the East Coast Road to Puducherry in Tamil Nadu. A marina is a boat basin that has docks, moorings, supplies, and other facilities for small boats.
The marina will have resorts and luxury apartments. The company will also be building infrastructure facilities in the marina. “We need to build a causeway and other facilities in the marina,” Koneru said. “The marina will be like a mini port of 3.5km.”

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Personal_Finance/Rakindo_to_set_up_15-bn_integrated_township_in_TN/articleshow/2960723.cms

http://www.livemint.com/2007/12/04002808/Rakindo-to-put-5-bn-into-real.html

saurabh85

April 18th, 2008, 07:59 AM

Hey guys any clue about the status of this trumpet interchange?? found it on the website of mukesh asscociates.
http://img244.imageshack.us/img244/4408/singa01yx1.th.jpg (http://img244.imageshack.us/my.php?image=singa01yx1.jpg)

devascity

April 18th, 2008, 10:25 AM

Dear friends,

while on the subject of fly over and bridges, any one has any idea on the bridge connecting 'Pallavaram - Thorappakkam 200ft bypass road' with GST road.

Is it complete or what is the present status?

Dev

saravananR

April 18th, 2008, 11:41 PM

Any news on taiwan sez project, its for AP or TN ?

saravananR

April 19th, 2008, 12:16 AM

Any news on singapore sez project in chennai?

paduraj55

April 19th, 2008, 12:36 AM

http://www.nwasianweekly.com/2008270017/living20082717.htm

Of the Indian locations included in the survey, Chennai (138) scores the most favorably ahead of Bangalore (153), Mumbai (156), New Delhi (169) and Kolkata (193).

:banana::banana::banana:

wcgokul

April 19th, 2008, 03:52 AM

Mumbai-based Greaves Cotton Ltd (GCL) intends to set up a greenfield production centre at Gummidipoondi, 50 km north of Chennai, where it will manufacture petrol/kerosene engines. GCL has another unit to produce such engines at at Thoraipakkam, some 20 km south of Chennai. Over time, this unit will also be shifted into the new unit at Gummidipoondi.

Though the proposed unit will come up on a fresh piece of land, GCL already has four other independent production facilities at Gummidipoondi, where it produces construction equipment. The fourth, set up at a cost of Rs 22 crore, was inaugurated today. The company has one more at Ranipet, some 120 km west of Chennai.

Addressing the media at Gummidipoondi today, the Managing Director and CEO of the company, Mr Praveen Sachdev, said the company has been manufacturing more than 2.5 lakh engines annually supplying to all the OEMs except Bajaj Auto. In the company’s financial year 2006-07, which ended in June, the engines business for GCL accounted for 80 per cent of sales. It has subsequently dropped to 70 per cent due to poor off take from three-wheelers manufacturers.

However, the infrastructure equipment division has been growing at over 60 per cent CAGR for the last four years, contributing to about 30 per cent of the group turnover. This has been possible since GCL is the only company in the country to offer both concreting and compaction equipment, he said.

In addition to inaugurating the plant, the Chairman of GCL, Mr Karan Thapar, also opened a training centre, to support the service engineers of the company, its customers and their operators. The company also announced signing of technical collaboration agreement with Bomag GmbH of Germany to manufacture 19-tonne vibratory soil compactors, used in large projects like airports, dams and irrigation projects.

Mr Sachdev, said the new plant built at a cost of Rs 22 crore would complement the existing units enabling GCL to double its capacity to 1,200 compaction machines per year.

This division already has two plants in Gumidipoondi and one in Tondiarpet in the city manufacturing transit mixers, vibratory compactors, tandem rollers, batching plants and concrete pumps. Shifting of manufacturing compaction machines the adequate space has been created at unit I and this would enable the company to significantly enhance production of concrete pumps, he said.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/04/19/stories/2008041950960200.htm

Fusionist

April 19th, 2008, 04:39 AM

Of the Indian locations included in the survey, Chennai (138) scores the most favorably ahead of Bangalore (153), Mumbai (156), New Delhi (169) and Kolkata (193).

:banana::banana::banana:

is this a cricket score ? in which case Chennai needs to improve its batting :|

kvijayasundaram

April 19th, 2008, 04:58 AM

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/04/19/stories/2008041951381000.htm

Venture Lighting India Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of $270-million Venture Lighting International Inc of the US, plans to invest another $27 million in India for expansion and new facilities.

The plan now is to expand the present capacity to 8.5 million with an investment outlay of $15 million. The facility may come up at TIDCO’s new SEZ in Chennai or another SEZ being developed by a private company near the Tamil Nadu-Andhra Pradesh border.That apart, it also plans to move its other business in the US, manufacturing of lighting peripherals including nano coating of light reflectors (used in projectors). “We are planning to set up green-field facilities at an investment of $12 million at the Madras Export Processing Zone where we have our current facility,” said Mr Sabu Krishnan, President, Venture Lighting International.

Jai

April 19th, 2008, 08:39 AM

Hi guys,

In order to take advantage of all this new room, I'm going to spin off a thread on Marg Ltd's Swarnabhoomi project. I''m working on compiling some information, as well as height estimates of the observation tower.

edit- here we go:
Megaproject: Marg Swarnabhoomi -- 230m+ Landmark Tower and 1000 acre SEZ city (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=610424)

http://img505.imageshack.us/img505/9686/00mp9.jpg

Subra

April 19th, 2008, 11:13 PM

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Chennai/Second_intenational_airport_likely_9_years_before_schedule/articleshow/2962938.cms

CHENNAI: The city is likely to get a spanking new airport by 2015, nine years before the earlier D-day. The greenfield project will be taken up on 4,822 acres of land near Sriperumbudur, northwest of Chennai, at an estimated cost of Rs 3,500 crore. The dates have been advanced in light of certain trouble — largely relating to land acquisition — that cropped up in the Rs 2,350-crore modernisation and expansion project of Kamaraj International Airport at Meenambakkam.

Unlike Bangalore and Hyderabad, Chennai's old airport will not be shut down when the new one comes up. Rather, the city will have two airports like those planned in Delhi and Mumbai. The search for a private consortium to build the airport will start soon. It will be offered a 74% stake, while the state and central governments will hold 13% each.

Officials told The Times of India that the state government had expressed difficulty in acquiring the 1,069 acres of land required west of the Adyar river for building a parallel runway as part of phase-II of the Meenambakkam expansion plan :ohno:. It is proving tough to get more than 300 acres of the land identified as the costs are prohibitively high. It's also difficult to clear the entire area of habitation, a state government official said.

At current prices, the government estimates it will cost Rs 2,000 crore to acquire the land. Besides, the Madras High Court recently ruled that the government could acquire land, but it's learnt that chief minister M Karunanidhi is not keen on displacing too many households in the area as he anticipates an adverse political fallout.

In the wake of these developments, the civil aviation ministry, in consultation with the state government, decided to speed up the greenfield airport at Sriperumbudur. Land for the new airport can be acquired easily as it belongs to the government.

Joint secretary, ministry of civil aviation, K N Shrivastava said air traffic was likely to grow faster in Chennai than earlier projected and would justify the decision on a new airport.

The ministry will set up a committee to decide how flights will be distributed between the two airports. It is too early to be specific on which flights (international, domestic and low-cost airlines) will operate from where, an official said.

Subra

April 20th, 2008, 01:45 PM

http://www.financialexpress.com/news/ArcelorMittal-is-bullish-about-biz-in-India/299300/

"We are also working in joint venture in Chennai in stainless steel, mainly for the automotive sector," Mukherjee said.

scrapper

April 20th, 2008, 08:07 PM

Hey Guyz,

Could you please tell me if the flyover that was opened in usman road + kodambakkam junction is solving the traffic chaos or not??

I saw the flyover plan of both Usman road + kodambakkam junction and panagal park and personally felt that both were crap plans and wouldnt solve the traffic snarls...

scrapper

April 20th, 2008, 08:09 PM

PlaneMad

April 20th, 2008, 08:26 PM

^^ The Mahalingapuram flyover (Kodambakkam), is quite a very minor flyover serving very little traffic, the main bottleneck is the kodambakkam flyover, over the rail line that is choked, this flyover hasnt done much to releive that.

The panagal park flyover will be more useful as it will allow vehicles to bypass two major junctions below.

ferrari_fan

April 21st, 2008, 04:35 AM

Hey guys,

Do u have any updates or renders on the following

- ITC Superdeluxe hotel
- Leela Palace
- Ozone group
- Express mall
- Prestige Forum mall
- Ampa mall

It would be great if u provide a current status on these..

ITC's Grand Chola Sheraton is under construction now - 2 tower cranes are upa nd running at the site and work is in progress day & night...

the Leela Palace IT Park is now over 10 floors high and will probably be topped out soon... the hotel itself is behind the IT park and it's hard to see the progress there...

the Express Estate Mall is also u/c with cranes in place for a couple of months now and work in progress..

unfortunately the Ampa mall is still in the same state of near-completion that it's been in for months now...

i don't really know where the Forum mall's coming up so no update on that... i'll try to take some pics once i'm thru with my exams next week...

:)

greatshankar

April 21st, 2008, 07:15 AM

^^ Forum Mall coming up near appollo hospitals, Teynampet. It has been covered for development, No idea about progress. (Vijaya Forum in Vadapalani)

Ceebros Rain Tree Hotel is coming up opp. to that.

wcgokul

April 21st, 2008, 07:25 AM

what's the exact location of the ITC Grand Chola Sheraton .........?

aash

April 21st, 2008, 07:38 AM

The existing flyover can be widened by removing the pedestrian walkway, they can easily build a foot over bridge by extending the fly over only over the railway crossing.

planemed can shed some light on this.

greatshankar

April 21st, 2008, 07:59 AM

what's the exact location of the ITC Grand Chola Sheraton .........?

CampaCola Grounds, Guindy

scrapper

April 21st, 2008, 08:14 AM

Hey Thanks Ferrari for takin the effort... anyway is Forum Mall and Vijaya Forum mall different??? Are both Prestige Group's malls????

greatshankar

April 21st, 2008, 08:41 AM

^^ Yes, Vijaya Forum coming up in Vijaya Studios Ground, Vadapalani. Forum is coming up in Anna Salai

Subra

April 21st, 2008, 12:45 PM

http://www.moneycontrol.com/india/news/business/daimler-hero-group-ink-rs-4400-cr-jv-for-5-yrs/14/53/334846

Daimler and Hero Group have signed a joint venture (JV) deal for Rs 4400 crore for five years. The Daimler-Hero JV would begin production by 2010. Daimler will invest Rs 1386 crore in the JV with Hero.

Marc Listosella would be the CEO of Daimler-Hero Motor Corporation, while Amit Chaturvedi will serve as the co-CEO. Daimler-Hero aims to achieve localisation rate of upto 80% and production of the commercial vehicles will be for export and other emerging markets. They are looking for manufacturing base at Haryana, Chennai or Pune. The other details would be finalised in one-two months. The company’s initial capacity would be 70,000 units.

Sunil Kant Munjal, Chairman of Daimler-Hero Motor Corporation reveals more about the deal.

Excerpts from CNBC-TV18's exclusive interview with Sunil Kant Munjal:
Q: What are he investments going in this joint venture by the two groups, what products will they manufacture and what will be the expertise of both these groups into this joint venture?

A: The overall investment is going to be around Rs 4,400 crore and roughly about 700 million euro and between the two, all in equity; 60% has been taken up by Daimler and 40% by Hero. The expertise as far as truck making is concerned obviously is entirely coming from Daimler. The Hero Group, we believe brings a fair amount of knowledge to the table as far as Indian market, Indian consumer is concerned, the Indian systems are concerned and also manufacturing skills; lean manufacturing is something we have been doing for over 50 years now in all of our operations and we believe that will be an added strength that we will bring from our side. So it’s a perfect match because there are completely complimentary skills.

The other good thing in this partnership is not just the working skills but in terms of philosophy there is a lot of commonality; both companies believe in fair play, depend a lot on people, like to build relationships and have a concern for the consumer and for the economy and ecology.

Q: What is the manufacturing base? Where its going to be and what will be the initial capacity of your products and also would you look at a contract manufacturing setup to begin with because you will start manufacturing only in 2010. So will that be an option?

A: The plan is to build a greenfield plant; so that is designed around a set of products and design that we are proposing. So there is a least amount of disruption as we go forward. As far as the location is concerned we are actively working to finalise the location right now, we had looked at many parts of India; we looked at 13 of them and now we have zeroed down to three and hopefully over the next four-eight weeks we should have one location where we will actually go and setup that part.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
I am keeping my fingers crossed. This will qualify for the UIAPP policy of TN govt as they are investing over 4000 crores.

kg4129

April 21st, 2008, 11:05 PM

By 2009, auto majors have promised to invest more than $6 billion in automobile manufacturing facilities in and around Chennai. Furthermore, State Government officials are in talks with leading players who may invest another $6 billion.

Seven players have signed Memoranda of Understandings with the Government for investments worth $6 billion, and three more are likely to ink deals worth $2 billion in the coming days, with negotiations entering an advanced stage.

Officials of Rajasthan, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu made a good use of the opportunity to sell their States. But, representatives of the Arab firms were lured by Power Point presentations made by Tamil Nadu officials and expressed their desire to invest in the State. “It is no longer pertinent to describe Chennai as Detroit of Asia, as we have moved a step further.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/22/stories/2008042254630500.htm

kvijayasundaram

April 21st, 2008, 11:23 PM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/22/stories/2008042256121600.htm

The Mahindras have drawn up a over Rs. 4,500 crore four-phase investment plan to develop four gated residential communities of 55 acres each at Mahindra World City near Singaperumal Koil, some 45 km from here.

Indicating this in an interaction with The Hindu, Arun Nanda, Vice-Chairman of Mahindra Lifespace Developers Ltd., said the first phase would see the development of 55 acres into a gated residential community at an estimated cost of over Rs. 1,000 crore. Mahindra Lifespace is the real estate arm of the Mahindra Group.

Mr. Nanda said the 55-acre land had the potential to develop three million sq. ft. of residential space. The project would be implemented by a special purpose vehicle, Mahindra Residential Development Ltd. The Mahindras, he said, had roped in ARCH Capital Asian Partners, L.P., a private equity real estate fund managed by ARCH Capital Management Company Ltd of the Philippines, to develop the first gated residential community. Three more independent residential gated communities would come up at Mahindra World City. Each would come up on 55 acres, he added. The tie-up with ARCH pertained only to the first phase, he said.

ARCH Capital is an affiliate of Ayala Land, the largest real estate brand in the Philippines, and Ayala Corporation. While the Mahindras would hold 51 per cent equity in Mahindra Residential Development, 49 per cent would be held by an ARCH-controlled investment arm, Mr. Nanda said.

The entire land, 200 acres, earmarked for residential houses had the potential to develop 15 million sq. ft. of housing space after providing for an FSI (floor space index) of 75 per cent. He said the Mahindras would take a call on partners for developing other three gated residential communities at an appropriate time.

First phase

The first phase of the project would go on stream in two years. It would contain 750 residential units, with sprawling green space and large community interaction zones.

It would take eight years for the four-phase project to complete, he added. Apart from the four gated residential community projects, a proposal was also on to develop 55 acres to set up support systems such as retail and recreational facilities.

Mr. Nanda said talks were at an advanced stage with a leading hospital here to set up a 100-bed hospital at Mahindra World City.

Mahindra LifeSpace, he said, had already developed its first 250-home residential project, Sylvan County, on 25 acres. Fifty homes had already been delivered.

kvijayasundaram

April 21st, 2008, 11:25 PM

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/04/21/stories/2008042151550301.htm

Mumbai-based Shirdi Industries Ltd plans to set up a Rs 35-crore factory to make prelaminated boards, furniture components and decorative laminates near Chennai. According to Mr R.K. Agarwal, Managing Director, Shirdi Industries, the facility coming up at Gummidipoondi to the north of Chennai will import plain particle boards and medium density fibreboards and prelaminate them for marketing. With a capacity to produce about 2.25 lakh sq m of prelaminated boards a month, it is nearly half the capacity of Shirdi's production at Uttarakhand. It will not only expand the company's production capacity but also strengthen its presence in the South. The 10-acre facility is expected to start production in October, .............

satsukhoi

April 22nd, 2008, 06:30 AM

As Madras became Chennai, words such as flyover, mall, outsourcing, multiplex, IT and coffee shop, became part of our lexicon. This city which once had nothing more than one mall and the beach for entertainment has today turned truly metropolitan.
Wired offices and working to world time have changed our perception of professionalism while huge malls and multiplexes have taught us to tuck into buckets of buttered popcorn and buy international brands that are probably made in Tirupur. But this is a city that believes in integration: degree kaapi in a davara tumbler is as well loved as frappe in a frosted glass; old-world, family-run businesses adapt to SAP quality management systems with elan. We love our language, hate our autodrivers, adore our film stars, despair over the state of our roads, take pride in our music, grumble about our weather...........

Read in full http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily/skins/TOI/navigator.asp?Daily=TOICH&login=default

Subra

April 22nd, 2008, 12:40 PM

http://www.expresstravelworld.com/200804/aviationworld07.shtml

The group has already zeroed-in on Goa, Chennai, Bangalore and Ahmedabad

peaceonearth

April 22nd, 2008, 05:40 PM

NEW DELHI -(Dow Jones)- The Indian unit of U.S.-based computer maker Dell Inc. (DELL) said Tuesday it has more than doubled annual production capacity to up to one million units at its lone manufacturing plant in the southern state of Tamil Nadu.

Dell India Pvt. Ltd., which earned revenue of $700 million in 2007, will now also start making laptops at the plant, which with a 400,000 unit per year production capacity until now, made only desktop computers for sale in the domestic market, a spokeswoman for Dell India said.

"Manufacturing capacity is now between 800,000 units per year to one million units a year," said Minari Shah. She declined to elaborate on the cost of expansion.

The plant, located near the port city of Chennai, began operations in August 2007 and will now make all models of laptops and desktops -- from low-cost to high-end -- sold in India.

http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/djf500/200804220930DOWJONESDJONLINE000479_FORTUNE5.htm

rajeshas

April 22nd, 2008, 07:52 PM

Is there a collection of all Chennai related threads...in one place....?

wcgokul

April 23rd, 2008, 02:50 AM

Is there a collection of all Chennai related threads...in one place....?

ya................and you've just reached it.....................

kpgopal

April 23rd, 2008, 08:27 AM

The Govt. Of Tamil Nadu has today invited bids for designing high speed corridors along all waterways in Chennai (This is in addition to the Maduravoyal - Port plan). Looks like a great plan & will make commuting in Chennai much easier. Details can be got at http://www.tenders.tn.gov.in/innerpage.asp?choice=tc5&tid=tnu12019&work=1

http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/6286/highspeedcorridorll2.th.jpg (http://img233.imageshack.us/my.php?image=highspeedcorridorll2.jpg)

kpgopal

April 23rd, 2008, 08:37 AM

Repeated post

Kingmaker

April 23rd, 2008, 09:05 AM

Dear SSCers,

As lot of threads are being created for Chennai, it is getting very difficult to find information. More and more number of clicks are needed to browse through and find information. If we keep creating a thread for every project, the new structure is not going to be user friendly at all. Especially the projects, where we wont have updates every week, do not deserve a separate thread (as they are going be idle after the initial interest). For e.g. the legislative assembly project could have been accomodated in 'Architecture' or the 'Landmark buildings' thread. Uncontrolled creation of new threads is only going to lead to chaos.

Another point to note is: do people really follow the structure. For e.g. some (or most) of the IT-related news gets posted in Chennai projects thread itself. Then why do we need Chennai IT-thread at all?

It would be interesting to know if anyone shares this opinion.

rajarajang

April 23rd, 2008, 10:09 AM

^^ I disagree. I dont see the point to have a separate sub-forum for chennai if we had to post everything in just one thread. IMHO, all major projects need to be discussed in separate threads.

Kingmaker

April 23rd, 2008, 10:47 AM

yogivel

April 23rd, 2008, 11:27 AM

http://www.tn.gov.in/pressrelease/pr230408/pr230408a.htm

http://www.tn.gov.in/pressrelease/pr230408/pr230408a.jpg

PlaneMad

April 23rd, 2008, 11:51 AM

satsukhoi

April 23rd, 2008, 12:34 PM

Chennai: Modernisation of 500 bus shelters in the city will begin next month, with Chennai Corporation finalising the contractor for the job. The new-look steel shelters will have features like a clock, time schedule and 12 steel seaters.
Adlabs Films Limited, which bagged the contract for Rs 16 crore, is expected to complete the work in a year.
The first group of shelters to be modernised includes those in Tondairpet, Basin Bridge and Nungambakkam zones (133 shelters). More than 150 shelters in Pulianthoppe, Ayanavaram and Kodambakkam, 96 shelters in Kilpauk and Saidapet zones, and 115 others in Ice House and Mylapore zones will also get a new look.
According to officials, the contractor will have to construct and maintain the shelters with the advertisement revenue it will fetch from the slots during the period of twelve years.
Interestingly, the local body had to negotiate with the Adlabs representatives to take up the first package for Rs 4 crore.
The tender could not be settled till Monday, as the company quoted a high amount, but later fell in line.
“The removal of hoardings has made bus shelters an alternative proposition for advertisers and this helped us finalise the tender on our terms,” a senior official said.
In the initial phase, the civic body will take up its own 364 shelters and another 136 shelters of the MTC for modernisation. The scheme was part of last year’s corporation budget presented by mayor M Subramanian. But the project got delayed, as the local body was waiting for the Supreme Court order on hoardings.
The company will have to pay an additional 5 per cent of the tender amount every year, as per the tender rules.

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOICH/2008/04/23/6/Img/Pc0061200.jpg
GOING HI-TECH: A modern bus shelter near the Secretariat built by the Chennai Corporation

kannan infratech

April 23rd, 2008, 01:22 PM

:nuts: way too ambitious, this smells like jj's grand 5000km monorail network

I think that the corridors are quite possible since the acquiring problem is almost nil. The squatters along the canals may pose some problems, but legally nobody can stop the authorities. If they have the will, there are ways.

Some of our SSC forumers visited the site from Malar Hospital to Kottur last year and embankments had already been readied for this portion. (Pl refer Sridhar's photos). I had also posted a few Google diagrams with alignments then.

JJNURM funds are available and finding a mega project within city poses a problem. This may solve both - spending JNNURM funds and solving the traffic problems.

May be some stretches like Porur area may pose some technical hurdles, but solvable. Thats why they have suggested elevated stretch there.

If care is taken not to encroach upon the water ways and plan to include the waterways also as transport corridors (Please dont refer to the earlier Koovam Manakkiradhu project), it will be a long time solution for the city.

We are doing some of the marina projects and the quanity of goods that can be moved over the water and the very less cost for the same amaze us.

Probably, Ennore - Mahabs coastal corridor (waterway along the coast with stop overs in between) may be a worthy project to experiment. If succesful, the same may be replicated upto Vedaranyam / Rameswaram.

If Sethu Samudhram clicks, may be the same used extensively by small boats upto Kanyakumari. The transport cost of bulk movement will come down and huge saving for the fuel (road sector) also.

Just imagine passenger cruise from Chennai to Tuticorin without the traffic snarls. Time saved, Fuel saved and less pollution.

The east coast will develop into a major corridor. Lets hope for the best.

PlaneMad

April 23rd, 2008, 01:47 PM

rajeshas

April 23rd, 2008, 08:16 PM

^^
I did not say I am against creating a new thread for 'major' projects. Major projects always deserve their own thread. The IT-corridor thread was a good example for that.

What I do not like to see is some thirty threads in Chennai sub-forum (as anyone can create a thread for a topic which he thinks is important) with 90% of them lying idle for want of contribution.
I also agree to have different threads for major topics. But at the same time for members like us who wants to read new posts on chennai, irrespective of topics..its getting hard to go visit different thread links to see if there are any new posts. Is there "one page" where we can see status of all threads or atleast all threads related to chennai grouped. That page would help users to visit the page that has a recent update. Also it would increase the interest of visiters.

Subra

April 23rd, 2008, 11:14 PM

http://www.livemint.com/2008/04/23235826/Nissan-plans-hatchback--to-lau.html

The project also encountered land acquisition problems in the initial phase, but “work has commenced on the land where our plant will come up,” Garg said.

IndiansUnite

April 23rd, 2008, 11:58 PM

Is there "one page" where we can see status of all threads or atleast all threads related to chennai grouped. That page would help users to visit the page that has a recent update. Also it would increase the interest of visiters.

The chennai subforum itself is one page where all the threads on Chennai are grouped.
click here --> http://www.skyscrapercity.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1229

When you click on the above link, it gives the time next to each thread as to when it was last updated and it also gives the name of the last poster.

kpgopal

April 24th, 2008, 08:36 AM

^^ But what in gods name are they going to do along the buckingham canal, build a road over the mrts? And even the mambalam drain, the thing is so narrow that even if they fill it up, its wide enough only for a two lane road

I dont think we should write of the whole idea. Though there are some stretches which pose a problem a lot of it is definitely possible. The stretch from Porur to Theosophical society along Adayar river is definitely possible (with the 4 km stretch from Porur to Ramapuram being elevated). Would be great if access is given at Porur to the Chennai Bypass Road. North Buckingham Canal to Ennore port may be possible. Not sure about the idea of connecting Koyambedu with Adayar river along IRR. This will clash with the metro project which is on the same alignment.

kannan infratech

April 24th, 2008, 10:22 AM

^^ But what in gods name are they going to do along the buckingham canal, build a road over the mrts? And even the mambalam drain, the thing is so narrow that even if they fill it up, its wide enough only for a two lane road

Please note that the Govt owns land on both sides of all waterways - whether it is Koovam, Adyar, Buckingham Canal, Mambalam Canal etc. Due to encroachments by slum dwellers and squatters, they look narrow. If they are given alternate accomodation at the new upcoming colonies at Thorappakkam, Kargil Naagar etc, (which the Govt is already implementing), no court can stop this shifting. Political will is needed.

A concrete road is being laid from MK Jn (behind KB Nagar station to Thiruvanmiyur station along the canal and with the bridge across the B.canal at Indra Nagar broadened, it will ease lots of traffic and may be providing most required parking space also.

Similarly it is possible to broaden the road along the B.Canal from Kottur station to KB Nagar station and lay a 4 lane road from Kottur station to Saidapet Bridge along Adyar. If they plan a bridge across adyar river from kottur to Mount road (near Cosmo Golf club), we will have an additional connection to IT Corridor. Traffic from Anna Salai (Nandanam) can reach MK Jn very quickly.

The new corridors are planned along and not over the canals. Your pessimism is somewhat understandable since all the TN Govts do not have the political will to take on the squatters. But the market forces may force the Govts to act as it was done in Hyderabad (By the ex CM Dr.Naidu)

Please be optimistic and hope for the best.

greatchennai

April 24th, 2008, 02:28 PM

Chennai-based Rattha group will develop an IT SEZ in Porur at a cost of Rs 1,750 crore.

The new SEZ will be called Estra IT SEZ and it come up on an area of 4.5 million square feet. The first phase of the construction work on 11 lakh square feet is likely to finish before 2009, while work on the second phase will be completed in 2012.

Speaking to reporters in Chennai on Thursday H S Rattha, chairman, Rattha Group, said the company will fund the project through 70 per cent debt and 30 per cent equity.

He added, the new SEZ will generate employment opportunities for over 50,000 professionals.

Spread over 26 acres in the city, the proposed SEZ will be a multi-tenanted green building that will also offer multi-storeyed car parking to cater of over 15,000 cars and 100-room service hotel.

http://www.business-standard.com/common/storypage_c_online.php?leftnm=10&bKeyFlag=IN&autono=36210

Subra

April 24th, 2008, 05:04 PM

http://www.business-standard.com/common/storypage_c_online.php?leftnm=10&bKeyFlag=IN&autono=36244

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd (M&M), the domestic tractor and utility vehicle major, has planned to set up two new manufacturing facilities for its Powerol diesel generating sets — one in Chennai and the other in Kolkata.

"These manufacturing units are expected to be operational within a year. While the Chennai facility will have a capacity of 10,000 units per annum, the Kolkata unit will have a capacity of 5,000 units per annum", Sachin Nijhawan, deputy general manager (retail sales) of M&M's engine application business, said.

Nijhawan did not disclose the investment figure for these two new facilities but said M&M would be investing in the range of Rs 100-200 crore on its Powerol (engines and diesel generating sets) business by 2010.

The amount will be used in scaling up production capacity of diesel generating (DG) sets, manufacturing higher capacity DG sets and also on research and development.

peaceonearth

April 24th, 2008, 05:27 PM

BOISE, Idaho, April 24 /PRNewswire/ -- Positron Systems, Inc of Boise,
Idaho and SRA Systems Limited of Chennai, India have signed an agreement
where Positron will license its induced positron analysis technique to SRA
and establish a Test Development Centre in Chennai.

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/04-24-2008/0004799413&EDATE=

Subra

April 25th, 2008, 01:17 AM

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Business/India_Business/Motorola_plans_handset_facility_near_Chennai/articleshow/2980751.cms

NEW DELHI: US major Motorola is set to unveil a key manufacturing facility in the suburbs of Chennai in the next few days, making it the second MNC after Nokia to make significant investments in manufacturing in India.

According to industry sources, the facility, which will eventually be spread over 450 acres or more, is coming up close to Nokia's handset manufacturing unit in Sriperumbudur. This is significantly larger than Nokia's facility, which reportedly covers an area of just 211 acres.

While Motorola refused to divulge any details, sources say Motorola's new unit is likely to closely follow Nokia's model of building a regional manufacturing hub.

Like Nokia, the Motorola plant is expected to manufacture state-of-the-art handsets that will serve both domestic and international markets. Rapid capacity ramp ups are also planned. Sources further hint that Motorola is likely to eventually consolidate its global manufacturing facilities in India for cost benefits, with its manufacturing plant in Singapore being the first to face a ramp down. It is learnt that Tamil Nadu chief minister, M Karunanidhi and telecom minister, A Raja are likely to inaugurate the facility.

Motorola has had a long history in India. It was one of the first companies to set up manufacturing units in the early 1990s. Later, it lost out in the equipment race to companies like Ericsson, Siemens and Nokia. In the last 2-3 years, Motorola has managed to make a serious comeback in the handset business. Part of this success is credited to extremely innovative advertising. However, Nokia still retains its leadership position in the market.

Nokia was among the first companies to move handset manufacturing to India and currently produces upwards of 80 million phones per year. It has reportedly invested over $200 million and has many vendors who cumulatively employ about 5,000 people.

With the Indian mobile market growing at approximately 100 million new subscribers a year and tens of millions of handsets needed for the replacement market, India itself could consume upwards of 150 million handsets a year by 2009 a massive opportunity for any manufacturing company. Motorola is the only US major to enter the handsets market apart from Helsinki-based Nokia and a few Korean companies like LG and Samsung. In India, Spice manufactures handsets under its own brand.

Subra

April 25th, 2008, 02:03 AM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/25/stories/2008042554370500.htm

CHENNAI: The State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu (SIPCOT) on Thursday invited the U.K.-based Mott MacDonald to conduct a feasibility study for the proposed industrial corridor of excellence that will run from Chennai to Bangalore.

The industrial corridor is being developed in two phases, so Mott MacDonald has been given 20 weeks each to submit the study. The first phase will run from Chennai to Sriperumbudur and then to Ranipet. The second phase starts at Ranipet to reach Bangalore through Hosur. Industrial parks, Special Economic Zones, information technology parks and integrated townships are expected to come along the corridor.

“Out of the four companies that responded to the global tender floated by the SIPCOT, only two firms fitted the bill. One bidder quoted Rs 1.77 crore, while MacDonald quoted Rs 50.5 lakh. We have asked them to complete the study within 40 weeks from the date of acceptance of the contract,” SIPCOT Chairman and Managing Director N. Govindan told The Hindu.

Going by the success of Saint Gobain, Nokia, Hyundai and others, multinational companies started zeroing in on the State to set up their units in and around Sriperumbudur. Today, Sriperumbudur is a regional manufacturing hub for automobiles, electronics hardware and telecom firms, and Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi wants to make it a manufacturing hub of Asia.

Sensing that the development would slowly extend beyond Sriperumbudur, the Industries Department mooted the Chennai-Bangalore, Coimbatore-Salem and Madurai-Thoothukudi industrial corridors. The Chief Minister wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, urging him to announce development of the Chennai-Bangalore corridor to provide globally competitive infrastructure and promote inclusive and sustainable industrial development. The Prime Minister’s Office gave the nod on April 1.

Subra

April 25th, 2008, 03:47 AM

http://news.moneycontrol.com/india/news/business/chrysler-s-indian-test-drive-/05/30/335551

India is yet to see Chrysler, Dodge, or Jeep models, but the maker of these brands, Chrysler has started the groundwork before hitting Indian roads.

Chrysler wants to get everything right in India, which is why it has started developing models in the country even before launching its first car. The American major will double its number of engineers to 400 this year at its Chennai center. The center was set up only last year. Those 200 developers are part of the 1,000 people that Chrysler will add in its centers this year outside North America.

A company spokesperson said the team is working on analysis of products and computational fluid dynamics, or CFD, work. CFD is a critical R&D activity that is also used to determine the drag co-efficient or aerodynamics of a model, which has a direct relation to fuel efficiency.

Chrysler's strategy is an example of how foreign carmakers are getting more serious about developing market specific products, feels AT Kearney's Automotive Practice Head. Nikolaus Soellner, Partner, AT Kearney, said, "India needs different features. An Indian customer is not concerned about a cup holder or small features, but it will determine the success."

Chrysler's work may also involve a small car. Talking about small car, there may be a possibility of expanding its recently announced alliance with Nissan for a small car in India as well. Under the alliance, Nissan will manufacture a small car for Chrysler at its Japan-based plant and Chrysler will manufacture a pick-up truck for Nissan in Mexico. Remember, Chrysler has held talks with M&M for possible partnerships for its Indian Safari.

vijayvmail

April 25th, 2008, 03:19 PM

Please note that the Govt owns land on both sides of all waterways - whether it is Koovam, Adyar, Buckingham Canal, Mambalam Canal etc. Due to encroachments by slum dwellers and squatters, they look narrow. If they are given alternate accomodation at the new upcoming colonies at Thorappakkam, Kargil Naagar etc, (which the Govt is already implementing), no court can stop this shifting. Political will is needed.

A concrete road is being laid from MK Jn (behind KB Nagar station to Thiruvanmiyur station along the canal and with the bridge across the B.canal at Indra Nagar broadened, it will ease lots of traffic and may be providing most required parking space also.

Similarly it is possible to broaden the road along the B.Canal from Kottur station to KB Nagar station and lay a 4 lane road from Kottur station to Saidapet Bridge along Adyar. If they plan a bridge across adyar river from kottur to Mount road (near Cosmo Golf club), we will have an additional connection to IT Corridor. Traffic from Anna Salai (Nandanam) can reach MK Jn very quickly.

The new corridors are planned along and not over the canals. Your pessimism is somewhat understandable since all the TN Govts do not have the political will to take on the squatters. But the market forces may force the Govts to act as it was done in Hyderabad (By the ex CM Dr.Naidu)

Please be optimistic and hope for the best.

I don't think clearing settlements along the river banks is going to be easy. Of course, the settlers there may not be able to claim the land. But they will oppose relocation to some far off place like Kargil nagar. And they're not wrong to do that. Their means of livelihood is in the city and will mostly be around their area of settlement. Now if they're moved to such far away places, how are they going to earn their livelihood? And going by the past, these new settlements will not have the proper facilities - water, sewage, transport etc.

The opposition parties will jump into the fray claiming to be the protector of the poor. There's going to be lots of push and pull and I guess the elections are also due next year. This is going to be difficult and in my opinion is going to depend on the conviction of the new government.

For a change, the govt should do things the right way - proper resettlement, timely compensation etc. Only then will such projects see completion. Agreed that our governments are coming under increasing pressure to deliver which is a good thing and lets hope the pressure pays off.

calculus_ask

April 28th, 2008, 12:20 PM

Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/rbssConsumerGoodsAndRetailNews/idUSBOM18896720080428

India's Tata Realty and Infrastructure Ltd, a subsidiary of Tata Sons Ltd, said on Monday it had entered into an agreement with the southern state of Tamil Nadu to build a special economic zone for information technology.

The project, which will see an investment of more than 30 billion rupees ($750 million), will include a convention centre and a luxury hotel and serviced apartments that will be built in a joint venture with Indian Hotels Co Ltd (IHTL.BO: Quote, Profile, Research), another Tata group company, it said.

The first phase of the 4 million sq ft-zone will be completed by end-2009, with the entire project ready by 2011, it said.

Special economic zones are large tax-free industrial enclaves created to boost industrial and export growth. ($1=40.2 rupees)

kannan infratech

April 28th, 2008, 12:52 PM

I don't think clearing settlements along the river banks is going to be easy. Of course, the settlers there may not be able to claim the land. But they will oppose relocation to some far off place like Kargil nagar. And they're not wrong to do that. Their means of livelihood is in the city and will mostly be around their area of settlement. Now if they're moved to such far away places, how are they going to earn their livelihood? And going by the past, these new settlements will not have the proper facilities - water, sewage, transport etc.

The opposition parties will jump into the fray claiming to be the protector of the poor. There's going to be lots of push and pull and I guess the elections are also due next year. This is going to be difficult and in my opinion is going to depend on the conviction of the new government.

For a change, the govt should do things the right way - proper resettlement, timely compensation etc. Only then will such projects see completion. Agreed that our governments are coming under increasing pressure to deliver which is a good thing and lets hope the pressure pays off.

I have visited the Thoraipakkam Kannagi Nagar Slum Clearance Board tenements along the B. Canal and the quality and the infrastructure are very good. Large no of slum dwellers have already shifted to this area and the new developments along OMR will give them lots of employment. PTC Bus terminus is also there. (I was also told that lots of Jeppadi Thiefs (Pick Pockets) have also been accomodated here which will be a potential threat to the bus / train passengers).

Kargil Nagar is yet to be developed and is bang on the Manali Highway. If Thoraipakkam model is followed, may be it will also be a success. Large employment opportunities along the industrial belt of North Madras may attract them. Transport is a must. The people living along Koovam and northern B.Canal can be accomodated here.

Since the slums inside the city areas provide the vote base for the political parties (impersonation experts I was told) shifting them will need a political will.

futurebiz1

April 28th, 2008, 01:41 PM

Pardon me from digressing but i just can't help it...I have been in Chennai all my life and over the past 3 years my commute has included a 70km(up and down) bus ride to office passing through the entire city. I have been to Delhi twice in the last 6 months and frankly am amazed by the city..I think we should stop saying that we would make our cities to Singapore,Shanghai etc..We should instead say that we would create an infrastructure like Delhi has..The quality of Roads in Delhi is just amazing..My brother who has been to many European cities like Paris,Rome etc says that the roads in and around Delhi are way better than even Paris or Rome...On top of that the Metro, which is just amazing..I showed the photos to one of my Friends and he did not believe that an Indian city would be so good..
I would like to say that I travelled extensively all around the NCR and everywhere the roads were amazing..Distances of 30Km did not take more than an hour even during peak traffic...How I wish Chennai could be close..Lots of traffic alignments like Free left and interchanges were so wonderfully designed and there were hardly any encroachments on most of the arterial roads..
I have been to Mumbai and Bangalore also recently and theses cities are worse than Chennai..I was so fed up of my daily travelling that I contemplated moving Abroad for some time but now my aim is to be rich enough to afford a house in NCR(preferably Noida) I feel that Every indian city should look to Delhi for effective traffic management.Sorry for posting personal thoughts here!!

P.s.
Delhi has more Vehicles than Mumbai,Chennai and Calcutta combined..

phaedrus

April 28th, 2008, 02:58 PM

cross posting from the real estate thread

Tata to develop Rs 30 bn IT SEZ in Chennai

Tata Realty and Infrastructure Ltd (TRIL) Monday announced an agreement with Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation (TIDCO) to jointly develop an IT special economic zone (SEZ) at a cost of Rs 30 billion (nearly $750 million) here.

Located on a 25-acre plot in Taramani, the SEZ will include a five-star hotel or service apartments, an international convention centre and help generate direct employment for 40,000 people and indirect employment to another 15,000.

TRIL chairman RK Krishna Kumar, who is also a director of Tata Sons Ltd, said the project would prove to be a milestone towards bridging development of IT and ITES-SEZs in India.

The SEZ is to be implemented in two phases - the first phase of 2.30 million square feet will be ready by end-2009 and the remaining 1.70 million would be completed by 2011.

The jont venture agreement for the IT SEZ was signed by TIDCO chairman and managing director S. Ramasundaram and Krishnakumar here in the presence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi.

TRIL is a new enterprise of Tata Sons Ltd, the holding company of the Tata Group. It has embarked on several projects for real estate and infrastructure development.

source economictimes.com (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News_by_Industry/Tata_to_develop_Rs_30_bn_IT_SEZ_in_Chennai/articleshow/2991239.cms)

vijayvmail

April 28th, 2008, 04:01 PM

I have visited the Thoraipakkam Kannagi Nagar Slum Clearance Board tenements along the B. Canal and the quality and the infrastructure are very good. Large no of slum dwellers have already shifted to this area and the new developments along OMR will give them lots of employment. PTC Bus terminus is also there. (I was also told that lots of Jeppadi Thiefs (Pick Pockets) have also been accomodated here which will be a potential threat to the bus / train passengers).

Kargil Nagar is yet to be developed and is bang on the Manali Highway. If Thoraipakkam model is followed, may be it will also be a success. Large employment opportunities along the industrial belt of North Madras may attract them. Transport is a must. The people living along Koovam and northern B.Canal can be accomodated here.

Since the slums inside the city areas provide the vote base for the political parties (impersonation experts I was told) shifting them will need a political will.

It's good to hear what you say about Kannagi nagar. Sometime back, I read somearticles about the lack of facilities in places like Kargil nagar. But if authorities are doing something about it, then thats fantastic.

Hope your words come true and the projects like this new expressway are completed on time without disrupting others.

Subra

April 28th, 2008, 11:39 PM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/29/stories/2008042956160600.htm

At the meeting organised at the Secretariat to sign the MoU, Tata Realty and Infrastructure president R.K. Krishnakumar assured the Chief Minister that the Tatas would deploy a dedicated group of senior professionals to examine the possibility of making further investments in the State in the manufacturing sector. The group would hold discussions with the Industries Department, SIPCOT and TIDCO to discuss the options, he told Mr. Karunanidhi, in response to a query from him.

Assuming the role of one seeking to sell the concept of Tamil Nadu as an investment destination — a role he has donned from the time he took over as Chief Minister in May 2006 — the Chief Minister asked Mr. Krishnakumar: “Why don’t you consider setting up a car manufacturing unit here?” He added: “The Chennai Port is the best port to export cars. You should look at Tamil Nadu.”

The Chief Minister told him that most major car manufacturers had established assembly lines in the State and that the Tatas should consider doing the same.

Mr. Krishnakumar said the Tata Group would consider the suggestion, and immediately told Mr. Karunanidhi that he would set up a group of top professionals from the group to explore opportunities in Tamil Nadu for Tata Motors and other concerns of the group.

kg4129

April 29th, 2008, 07:57 AM

There are no prizes for guessing which city is the IT capital of India. But interestingly, the build-up in Chennai has all the ingredients to knock Bangalore off centre stage. Number-crunching by TOI suggests that Chennai will host the maximum number of software professionals in the country in three to five years

Going by the sheer size of plans Tamil Nadu has received, at least 37 IT special economic zones (SEZs) are expected to be built by private developers in the next few years. There are 11 dedicated software parks being set up by state agencies. And there are 220 IT parks sanctioned by the state IT department. "We have given approval for 73 million sq ft for IT parks alone," government sources said. Karnataka has sanctioned only 15 dedicated IT SEZs.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/6_of_top_10_IT_exporters_from_Chennai/articleshow/2993068.cms

Arul Murugan

April 29th, 2008, 12:38 PM

Cathay pacific service to start from June 3rd.

Chennai dep 02:30 and HK arr 10:45

HK dep 22:45 and Chennai arrival 02:30.

This was the timings in Cathay pacific ad which i saw in The hindu yesterday.

It plans to connect Hong Kong with Chennai from June 3 with four-times a week service. Its wholly owned subsidiary airline Dragonair will start a daily service from Hong Kong to Bangalore in May. "The flights being added by Cathay Pacific and Indian carriers between the two countries will help in exploiting the potential of trade and tourism between the two nations," Cathay Pacific Chief Executive Tony Tyler told reporters.

http://www.business-standard.com/common/storypage_c_online.php?leftnm=10&bKeyFlag=IN&autono=35793

Subra

April 30th, 2008, 04:11 AM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/04/30/stories/2008043059980800.htm

CHENNAI: The State Cabinet has approved a slew of projects aimed at cementing Tamil Nadu as the most preferred investment destination.

It also approved concessions granted to various industries recommended by the Industries Department.

The DMK government has made it a practice to discuss in the Cabinet the concession given to any industry or group and this was the reason for all concessions granted coming up for discussion before the State Cabinet.

The Cabinet meeting, which went on for over two hours and was chaired by Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, decided on the expansion of some industries, notably Dalmia Cements and Madras Cements, given the increasing demand for cement. This is also with a view to rein in the price of cement apart from ensuring better availability across the State.

All the members of the Cabinet and senior officials attended the meeting.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Can any one tell me how to find the list of projects approved ?

Arul Murugan

April 30th, 2008, 07:49 AM

Retailers book malls on drawing boards

Jayaraj Sivan | TNN

Chennai: With an acute scarcity of retail space in Chennai, customers have started showing interest in booking mega malls even at the planning stage, says the first quarterly report of NAI Hemdev’s International Realty Services.
About 5-7 million sq ft retail space will be added by seven mega malls — Coromandel Plaza and Riverside Mall (both on OMR), Prestige Mall (Vadapalani), P S Mall (Velacherry), Express Mall (Off Anna Salai), DLF Mall (Ramapuram) and AMPA Mall (Nelson Manickam Road) — in the coming years. But as the demand is very high, significant pre-leasing activity is witnessed in all these malls, the report said.
Since the actual supply of retail space in 2007 was negligible, the rentals witnessed a substantial rise last year. The retail rentals in some parts of Anna Salai and Nungambakkam range from Rs 120 to Rs 140 per sq ft. Other prime locations where retail rentals have shot up substantially are Adyar, Alwarpet, Anna Nagar, Cathedral Road and T Nagar.
Retail in Chennai has traditionally been of the high street format. It started evolving after the advent of shopping malls like Cisons Comples, Alsa Mall and Spencer Plaza in the 80’s and 90’s and more recently Ispahani Centre and Chennai Citi Centre. But lack of adequate space on arterial roads and in concentrated retail hubs is a hindrance for new malls in the city.
In the commercial sector (IT and non-IT office space), the city has undergone dramatic changes in the past four years which very few world cities have experienced, the report said. Chennai is next only to Bangalore in terms of developing office space market in the country. A significant development in the IT sector is emergence of Mount-Poonamallee Road and Grand Southern Trunk Road as alternative IT destinations to the Old Mahabalipuram Road.
In the first quarter of 2008, already one million sq ft office space has been absorbed in the city. Radhakrishnan Salai and Anna Salai have the highest commercial rental value in the city. The per sq ft rental values of ‘A’ grade office space in the city are: R K Salai (Rs 70-90), Anna Salai (60-90), Nungambakkam (65-85), Egmore (60-75), Kilpauk (55-60), Alwarpet (70-80), MRC Nagar (55-80) and Adyar (55-75).

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily/skins/TOI/navigator.asp?Daily=TOICH&login=default

Raj_network

May 1st, 2008, 05:33 AM

http://img241.imageshack.us/img241/3411/e131jy9.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

futurebiz1

May 1st, 2008, 08:14 AM

A question to fellow forumers? What is the current policy on Share Autos?
They had been a recent addition to Chennai(from 2000 I guess)..No major cities have them.Though they are useful they flout all the basic safety rules and are not suitable for a major metro like Chennai..Vehicles like these are common only in tier 3 indian cities and Villages.Wonder y no one talks about them..

Subra

May 2nd, 2008, 04:31 AM

http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEB20080501151044&Page=B&Title=Business&Topic=0

AUTOMOTIVE major Ford India has started manufacture of diesel engines from its engine assembly plant near Chennai having a capacity of assembling 60,000 engines per annum.

At present, the engines are being used for Ford Fiesta and Fusion cars and will be later exported primarily to Africa. This follows the company's plans to increase capacity at its small car and diesel engine plants for the next 2 years.

Talking to mediapersons here on Thursday, Michael Boneham said, after taking over as the new President and Managing Director of Ford India, that in the first phase, the engine plant production would only be for domestic use.

Exports from the Chennai engine plant would start in the second and third phase of expansion.

Earlier, Ford had announced a $ 500 million investment for setting up a new production line for a small car and an engine plant over the next 2 years bringing up their investments in India to $ 875 million. "We would be doubling our capacity from our current production of 1 lakh cars per annum by 2010," said Boneham.

greatshankar

May 2nd, 2008, 07:58 AM

Arul Murugan

May 2nd, 2008, 08:36 AM

futurebiz1

May 2nd, 2008, 04:36 PM

Chennai Transport system is very wide now

1. Suburban trains
2. MRTS
3. MTC buses - Ordinary, Yellow, White boards, Air bus semi floor buses White, pink, golden, red colours, AC Volvo
4. TNSTC Villupuram division buses
5. Autos
6. Taxis
7. Share Auto
8. Vans(common in IT corridor from Sholingnallur)

9. Upcoming metro rail
10. BRTS in Adayar banks.

In this Auto, Taxi, Share Auto, Vans need attension.

Chennai is famous for Auto cheaters... Share Auto's are also another cheaters, they charge Rs 20/- to 30/- per passenger from Kathipara to Thiruvanmiyur. Atleast they are dumping 8-10 people per trip in one auto... No rules from government side for these autos!

Taxis in Airport need a new look. Still the old black/yellow ambassador cars are rolling in city roads...

Vans - again no rules on these vans..... they rule the roads in IT corridor b/w Shols to Kelambakkam. Office goers who miss their company bus have to depand on these vans now.

I had travelled to Mumbai and Delhi Recently and the Autos in these cities were a lot better.In Mumbai,though It was my first time, no auto driver tried to cheat me(I made it obvious that I was new to Mumbai).I travelled extensively on trains and autos and the auto rates were always based on the meter.The rates were very very reasonable compared to Chennai..I remember travelling a distance of around 1km and paying Rs.9.In Chennai the minimum would be Rs 25.I never take autos in Chennai but in Mumbai I just hopped on whenever I wanted to without any hestitation since I knew that I would not be cheated.
In Delhi, though the rates are not as per meters, they are very reasonable when compared to Chennai.It is time the Govt steps in meaningfully to control the Auto menace in Chennai.

greatshankar

May 2nd, 2008, 08:36 PM

Yes I agree with you, in mumbai almost all the autos are running by meter and its very very cheap compare to other cities.

Since most of chennai autos owned by police officials nobody dare to take any action!!??.

http://www.cmdachennai.org/first_consul.html

2) Ms. Pratibha Raman, Journalist

(a) To solve the traffic and transportation problems in CMA, the auto fare may be subsidized as that of public Bus transport.

CDMA Remark: ??!!
The Auto fare cannot be subsidized. A transport system has to be self-sustaining so as to function efficiently

ranga

May 3rd, 2008, 01:23 PM

I had travelled to Mumbai and Delhi Recently and the Autos in these cities were a lot better.In Mumbai,though It was my first time, no auto driver tried to cheat me(I made it obvious that I was new to Mumbai).I travelled extensively on trains and autos and the auto rates were always based on the meter.The rates were very very reasonable compared to Chennai..I remember travelling a distance of around 1km and paying Rs.9.In Chennai the minimum would be Rs 25.I never take autos in Chennai but in Mumbai I just hopped on whenever I wanted to without any hestitation since I knew that I would not be cheated.
In Delhi, though the rates are not as per meters, they are very reasonable when compared to Chennai.It is time the Govt steps in meaningfully to control the Auto menace in Chennai.

You are absolutely correct in your observations.Chennai autorickshawallahs are the worst.How come in Chennai most autos are owned by police people?They always grumble that they don't get "savaries".But when they don't run on meter and ask very unreasonable fare who will hire autos?They can increase their turnover et la mumbai by operating on meter or reasonable fare like in Delhi,Bangalore and Hyderabad.Even in kolkatta the taxis are cheap.The very unreasonable high fare demanded by chennai's auto fellows make people shun autos as far as possible and the people from outside chennai are at their mercy during their visits and they carry negative picture about chennai and this is also affecting tourism.The situation is same even after so many decades.I had the bitter experience of chennai autos during my stay there in the eighties.

ranga

May 3rd, 2008, 02:17 PM

Upcoming residential projects in chennai can be seen in the following site

http://www.axiomestates.com/chennai-property.htm?gclid=CNDVyOGkipMCFQ8obwodZEwB6Q

phaedrus

May 3rd, 2008, 09:23 PM

cross posting with the auto industry thread

Ford plans to make India its APAC, Africa hub for engines

Ford India, the wholly-owned subsidiary of Ford Motor, plans to make India its strategic manufacturing hub for engines in the Asia Pacific & Africa (APA) region. It will export both petrol and diesel engines to South Africa and other countries in the APA regions in the next two years. The company will take its engine production capacity in Chennai to 2.5 lakh from 60,000 per annum. This is part of Ford’s strategy to invest Rs 2,000 crore to increase the production of engines and vehicles by 2010.

Ford India designate president & MD Michael Boneham told ET: “We plan to source engines from India for the adjoining markets. The locally-produced engines are meeting our domestic needs. In the second phase of expansion, we shall export them to the various markets in Asia and Africa, which will be finalised in due course. To take advantages of India’s low-cost operations and make the engines globally price competitive, we have already tuned up our local supply channel at Chennai.”

With the new management in place, Ford India plans to roll out a new marketing and product strategy to improve its position in the domestic market. Its market share had fallen in India as sales declined 19% to 33,880 vehicles in FY08. The company has not ruled out the possibility of introducing its next generation Fiesta compact cars in India, which made its debut in the Geneva Motor Show this year.

“Ford is changing perspective towards global models. We are looking at ways to make these products part of our India strategy including the new Fiesta, which is part of our global platform of new products. We are aware of the declining sales in India and will soon come out with a series of plans to turn around sales,” Mr Boneham said. Ford’s small car is likely to debut in India by 2010. It will be exported to various regions apart from APA.

“We will have a capacity to produce 2 lakh cars in India by 2010. The small car will be a global product in the premium category and it will be exported, “ Mr Boneham said. The company will also continue with its discounting strategy on various vehicles. It recently reduced price of its entry-level sedan, Ikon, by Rs 40,000 to arrest declining sales

source economictimes.com (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Ford_to_make_India_its_APAC_Africa_hub_for_engines/articleshow/3006037.cms)

vijayvmail

May 3rd, 2008, 10:17 PM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/04/stories/2008050455840100.htm

At last some news on the airport expansion. But, isn't the 2011 completion deadline too long for an additional run way and terminal. Just recently China completed the new Beijing terminal, supposedly one of the largest buildings in the world, in just 4 years. Of course, this is not China, but still the scale of the expansion is also no way near the Chinese expansion. And the worst part is that, it is always likely that this 2011 deadline will be pushed back.

But atleast it's better that the project is moving ahead.

scrapper

May 4th, 2008, 05:12 AM

Hey mods. its high time we have Chennai Projects Update thread - IV

Arasu

May 4th, 2008, 01:20 PM

You are absolutely correct in your observations.Chennai autorickshawallahs are the worst.How come in Chennai most autos are owned by police people?They always grumble that they don't get "savaries".But when they don't run on meter and ask very unreasonable fare who will hire autos?They can increase their turnover et la mumbai by operating on meter or reasonable fare like in Delhi,Bangalore and Hyderabad.Even in kolkatta the taxis are cheap.The very unreasonable high fare demanded by chennai's auto fellows make people shun autos as far as possible and the people from outside chennai are at their mercy during their visits and they carry negative picture about chennai and this is also affecting tourism.The situation is same even after so many decades.I had the bitter experience of chennai autos during my stay there in the eighties.

As someone who studied and lived in Chennai, I can vouch for the audacious behaviour of Chennai's autowallahs. The showdown with these fellows can mar one's day or the whole trip to the city. Even as a local, fluent in the lingo I had many bitter encounters with autorickshaw fellows. It is hightime, the authorities reigned in these blokes and provided a hassle free transportation to visitors and the locals alike. It will go a long way in improving the image of the city.

peaceonearth

May 4th, 2008, 08:47 PM

Mumbai (PTI): India Inc witnessed an all-time high new project investment proposals in Q4 FY 08 at Rs 5,58,333 crore, according to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy CapEx database.
...
Among the major new investment projects announced in March 2008 include Chennai Petroleum Corporation's Rs 45,000 crore refinery and petrochemical project at Ennore...

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/006200805041021.htm

Into_salem

May 5th, 2008, 06:37 PM

Chennai: The Chennai Corporation will soon introduce a green channel for planning permissions for categories already delegated to it by the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority.

Applicants can use the channel for permissions for ordinary residential buildings (ground plus one floor with four dwelling units); commercial ordinary buildings and industrial and school buildings.

Once the channel is introduced, the applications can be given at the Corporation’s headquarters in Ripon buildings.

The documents required would include an undertaking on a stamp paper of Rs. 20 from the applicant stating ownership and a statement that the proposed building would comply with Development Control Rules.

Buildings in CRZ areas and parts of Velachery and Taramani will not be covered by the green channel.

The permission can be cancelled if the information is found false.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/05/stories/2008050559660400.htm

Into_salem

May 5th, 2008, 06:39 PM

Chennai: The Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Limited (TNUIFSL) has been assigned the task of selecting project consultants to design the State Horticulture Farm planned in the gardens that earlier housed the Woodlands Drive-in restaurant.

The State government held a meeting on Wednesday to discuss the project. As it was only a first-level meeting, there were no decisions taken on the project blueprint. TNUIFSL, which was also the agency appointed to identify and engage consultants for the Adyar Eco Park, will work with the Horticulture Department to select the project consultants for the horticulture farm.

TNUIFSL will float tenders to select a qualified designer with experience in planning botanical gardens or parks. The project costs have not yet been worked out.

Last month, Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi had informed the Assembly that a world-class botanical park, on the lines of the Lalbagh, would be developed on the site. A horticulture research centre would also be set up. An overhead vestibule and an underground walkway would connect the gardens to that of the Agri-horticultural Society located just across on the Cathedral Road.

The main building of the Woodlands Drive-in has been partly demolished. The sprawling 18-acre, horticulture farm site will also have a greenhouse for rare species of medicinal and non-medicinal plants, a children’s activity centre and a nursery for seedlings. The Horticultural Society once held annual flower shows and these could be revived, say naturalists.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/05/stories/2008050559720400.htm

Subra

May 5th, 2008, 08:37 PM

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/05/06/stories/2008050651090200.htm

Chennai, May 5 A clutch of investments, including Rs 2,000 crore by the Videocon group, to manufacture consumer durables, and project proposals by a range of companies in automobile components, cement, wind energy and steel were among the projects approved by the Tamil Nadu Cabinet recently.

According to sources in the know, other investments approved include Rs 1,500 crore by Hansen for setting up a gear box and drives manufacturing unit for wind turbines. This project is to come up at Palladam, near Coimbatore.

Allisons Transmission, one of the largest manufacturers of transmission and gear box equipment for commercial vehicles, is to invest Rs 350 crore in a manufacturing plant near Sriperumbudur.

The Government has also approved a Nokia-Siemens joint venture for cell phone infrastructure, another by Kansai-Nerolac for paints and a 100-per cent export-oriented unit by NM Tyres.

These were among the 13 investment proposals approved by the State Government at the Cabinet meeting on April 29.

The total investments envisaged in these projects are estimated at over Rs 17,400 crore. Apart from new units, the Cabinet also approved a Rs 2,000-crore expansion of the Salem Steel Plant; and the expansion plans proposed by Madras Cements and Dalmia Cements, the sources said.

Sources also said that the State Government is considering setting up country-specific industrial estates.

When large groups of companies from abroad come together, the State Government would offer them land at one location so they could create an appropriate ecosystem for themselves. This would give them some ‘cultural comfort’ and a cohesive working environment. This would be purely demand-driven with such industrial estates considered when sufficiently large numbers of companies come from one region.

For instance, over 40 Japanese companies are interested in setting up a range of manufacturing units close to Chennai, with 3-4 of them together accounting for over Rs 1,500 crore. The State Government would offer them land to set up the units in contiguous areas to enable them to create a culturally cohesive and comfortable ecosystem.

Similarly, official representatives from Finland have also approached the State Government for allocation of over 200 acres for 20 companies. Such initiatives are also being considered for companies from Germany and elsewhere.

chennaimetroblogs

May 5th, 2008, 11:51 PM

http://www.blonnet.com/2008/05/06/stories/2008050652442100.htm

Chennai, May 5 Aggressively targeting investments, diversifying the industrial base, employment-based incentives and a new IT policy were among the policy directions spelt out for the industrial development of Tamil Nadu by the State Government.

Responding to the debate on the demand for grants to the Industry Department, the Local Administration Minister, Mr M.K. Stalin, said that the State Government has set for itself a target of attracting over Rs 30,000 crore in investment to the State by December this year.

This would be through 25 investment proposals.

The Government has signed 14 MoUs totalling investments of over Rs 18,483 crore, generating 1.49 lakh jobs. The State Government has set a record of sorts by approving over 13 industrial projects totalling investments of over Rs 17,400 crore with potential to generate over 18,750 jobs directly at the cabinet meeting on April 29, he said.

Diversified base

To spread the benefits of investments across the State, including to the South and West, and encourage investments in rural areas, the Government has come out with a structured package of incentives specifically for investments in the South and incentives for investments in areas other than Chennai, Thiruvallur and Kanchipuram.

chennaimetroblogs

May 5th, 2008, 11:52 PM

http://www.blonnet.com/2008/05/06/stories/2008050651450700.htm

The development of Chennai airport is likely to be put on the fast track in the next few weeks with the pre-public investment board meeting for the project scheduled to be held here on May 12.

Generally the inter-Ministerial pre-PIB meeting is held to iron out any differences that various ministries have about the project. After the pre-PIB clearance, the project will have to get the nod from the Public Investment Board and finally the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs before work can begin.

The development work is expected to cost Rs 1,808 crore. Sources indicated that consultations have been held with the State Government to acquire 1,069.99 acres of land and hand this to AAI free-of-cost.

The Government has decided that the modernisation of both Chennai and Kolkata airports will be taken up by Airports Authority of India.

Subra

May 6th, 2008, 12:17 AM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/06/stories/2008050657740700.htm

Plan to sign 25 MoUs to bring in investment

CHENNAI: The State government is planning to sign 25 memorandums of understanding in 2008 which will bring in an investment of over Rs. 30,000 crore, according to M.K. Stalin, Local Administration Minister.

Initiating the debate on the demands for grants to Industries and Information Technology departments in the Assembly, Mr Stalin, who was deputised by Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, said the MoUs with Ashok Leyland-Nissan and Moser Baer were proposed to be signed shortly. The government had signed 14 MoUs which would bring in an investment of Rs. 18,483 crore and provide direct and indirect employment to 1,49,140 persons.

R2IChennai

May 6th, 2008, 01:57 AM

Subra

May 6th, 2008, 02:41 AM

http://www.business-standard.com/common/news_article.php?leftnm=lmnu2&subLeft=1&autono=322027&tab=r

TN ITexports is 29K crores from 20700. 40% growth is pretty good considerign annual it exports was in the range of 20% (rupee terns)

To become next only to Bangalore, TN should try to grow by 50%. Hope my dream will be realized when the tier-II cities starts playing a role. :)

wcgokul

May 6th, 2008, 04:03 AM

To become next only to Bangalore, TN should try to grow by 50%. Hope my dream will be realized when the tier-II cities starts playing a role. :).

we need to consistently grow at the rate of 50% for at least five years....

dis.agree

May 6th, 2008, 07:59 AM

To become next only to Bangalore, TN should try to grow by 50%. Hope my dream will be realized when the tier-II cities starts playing a role. :)

tn has generally been next only to bangalore for many years now. i guess you meant #1 destination. but does this number game really matter? tn & chennai has proved itself as an important IT destination and that is unlikely to change with the momentum it has gained now.

Into_salem

May 6th, 2008, 08:58 AM

Subra

May 6th, 2008, 11:45 AM

tn has generally been next only to bangalore for many years now. i guess you meant #1 destination. but does this number game really matter? tn & chennai has proved itself as an important IT destination and that is unlikely to change with the momentum it has gained now.

In the past few years, Maharastra and NCR has gone ahead of TN. Again the difference between the leader (B'lore) and the second spot is very huge. By tapping the IT potential fully, TN can create huge employment opportunities across the state.

Subra

May 6th, 2008, 12:30 PM

http://www.tn.gov.in/policynotes/pdf/industries.pdf

Thyssenkrupp, Germany
Auto Components (crankshaft)
350 crores

Allison Transmissions, USA
Transmission
350 crores

Subra

May 6th, 2008, 05:12 PM

http://www.forbes.com/markets/feeds/afx/2008/05/06/afx4974687.html

MUMBAI (Thomson Financial) - The world's largest chemical group, BASF (nyse: BF - news - people ) SE, said it will build an engineering plastics compounding facility, catering to the automobile industry, at Thane in India and also triple capacity at its Chennai-based facility by 2009.

mukeshworld

May 7th, 2008, 05:29 PM

Trane Inc opens global design centre in Chennai (http://www.bombaynews.net/story/356649)
The US-based heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) firm Trane Inc launched its global design centre here to support the company's Indian market as well as its global research and development (R&D) wing, said a top official.

The Chennai centre will also have validation and verification capabilities.

Located in Ascendas IT Park, the centre will initially focus on controls embedded and application software, Trane's global engineering and technology vice-president Prakash Bedapudi told reporters here Wednesday.

The Chennai centre is expected to exchange knowledge, expertise and best practices with Trane's design centres in other parts of the world.

The centre will have a total capacity to seat 200 engineers and the company is in the process of staffing it.

'Being located in a region with a large supply of engineering talent, the centre can help accelerate new feature additions to existing products and reduce the time needed for new product introductions. In addition, it can help the company rapidly adapt its products to the demands of the dynamic and fast growing emerging markets,' Bedapudi added.

Into_salem

May 7th, 2008, 08:06 PM

M.C. Road subway to be ready by March

Staff Reporter

Chennai: The vehicular subway at Monegary Choultry Road junction near the Stanley Medical College would be completed by March next year, according to mayor M. Subramanian .

On Tuesday, the Mayor inspected the progress of work. The subway, permitting two-way traffic, would be 359 metres long and 8 metres wide. The Chennai Corporation would spend Rs 10.56 crore on the project and the Southern Railway Rs. 4.35 crore. Water and sewer lines at the site have been shifted and the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board would shift cables in 10 days. The subway would be useful for north Chennai residents of Royapuram, Washermenpet and Mint.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/07/stories/2008050758330200.htm

MD/SLM/TN/TRY

Subra

May 7th, 2008, 09:29 PM

http://www.ndtvprofit.com/2008/05/07232827/JSW-Steel-Toshiba-sign-pact-f.html

Sajjan Jindal, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, JSW Steel, who is synonymous to the Indian steel sector is aiming high moving from being just a steel tycoon to an energy player.

JSW Group has tied up with Japan's Toshiba for making steam turbines and generators in India in a $250 million deal.

Jindals will set up a plant in Chennai and the turbines made there will be used for power generation. JSW will not only use them for its own power generation but also sell it to other players in the market.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Looks like the investment is over 1000 crores ...

chennaimetroblogs

May 8th, 2008, 01:48 AM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/08/stories/2008050854280500.htm

CHENNAI: The State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu (SIPCOT) has invited the U.K.-based Mott MacDonald to conduct a feasibility study for the proposed Chennai-Bangalore Industrial Corridor of Excellence (ICE).

An agreement to this effect is likely to be signed soon.

ICE is being developed in two phases and hence Mott MacDonald has been given a time frame of 20 weeks each to submit the study. The first phase runs from Chennai to Sriperumbudur to Ranipet. The second phase starts from Ranipet to Hosur to Bangalore. Industrial parks, Special Economic Zone, Information Technology parks, integrated townships are expected to come along the corridor.

“Out of the four companies that responded to the global tender floated by SIPCOT for this particular task, only two fitted the bill. One bidder had quoted Rs 1.77 crore, while MacDonald quoted Rs 50.5 lakh. We have asked them to complete the study within 40 weeks from the date of acceptance of the contract,” N. Govindan, SIPCOT Chairman and Managing Director, told The Hindu.

Hearing the success stories of Saint-Gobain, Nokia, Hyundai and others, multinational companies are looking to set up their units in and around Sriperumbudur. Today, Sriperumbudur is a regional manufacturing hub for automobiles, electronics hardware and telecom firms and Chief Minister,M. Karunanidhi wants to make it a manufacturing hub of Asia.

Sensing that the development would slowly move beyond the Sriperumbudur region, the State Industries Department mooted ICE concept from Chennai to Bangalore, Coimbatore to Salem, and Madurai Thoothukudi and informed Mr. Karunanidhi accordingly.

Immediately, the Chief Minister wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urging him to announce Chennai-Bangalore ICE on the lines of the Delhi-Mumbai corridor to provide globally competitive infrastructure and promote inclusive, sustainable industrial development.

The Prime Minister’s Office gave the nod for ICE on April 1, following which SIPCOT moved in swiftly and short-listed Mott MacDonald.

Interestingly, Mott MacDonald is an employee-owned management engineering and development consultancy firm that provides services to private and public sector firms worldwide. “After receiving the final report from the Consultants, we will place it before the State Cabinet for final approval,” Mr. Govindan said.

Arul Murugan

May 8th, 2008, 05:43 AM

Multi-storeyed buildings to house micro industries

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai: The Tamil Nadu Government will set up multi-storeyed complexes for micro industries in three industrial estates in Chennai, minister for rural industries Pongalur N Palanisamy told the Assembly on Wednesday.
In view of the space crunch and the high price of vacant plots, the Government would set up multi-storey complexes in Guindy, Ambattur and Tirumazhisai industrial estates, he said while replying to the debate on the demand for grants for his department.
The floor space index for these complexes would be fixed at 2.5 and all infrastructure facilities would be provided, he added.
New industrial estates would also be established in the backward districts of Ariyalur, Kanyakumari, Din-digul and Theni through Small Industries Development Corporation (SIDCO), the Minister said.
Palanisamy said the Government would also implement REMOTE (Scheme of Rejuvenation, Modernisation and Technology Upgradation of Coir Industry) at an estimated cost of Rs 24.37 crore during the 11th Five Year Plan. As many as 737 coir units would be covered under the scheme, benefiting 5,254 workers and entrepreneurs.
The supply of raw materials like coke and pig iron to micro and small industries, which had been put on hold, would be restored. Adequate iron and steel would also be supplied through SIDCO.
All the works would be executed through public-private partnership, he said.
The minister said private sector would be allowed to develop industrial estates in the state as per the recently unveiled policy for micro, small and medium industries.
The entrepreneurs setting up units in these estates would be entitled for the concessions offered to industrialists in government-sponsored estates.
The Government would soon bring a legislation to give statutory status for the existing ‘single window clearance system,’ for clearing various formalities under a single roof for setting up industries, he said.
The state had over 5.6 lakh small and medium enterprises, with an investment of Rs.1936.40 crore and employing nearly 40 lakh persons, he said adding the new policy aimed at doubling it.

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily/skins/TOI/navigator.asp?Daily=TOICH&login=default

Arul Murugan

May 8th, 2008, 06:13 PM

It seems things are moving fast for Chennai BRTS.

Today i saw some animation for Chennai BRTS in a news channel called "Reality"

Even i dont the correct name of that channel.......

If any one noticed it please give more information.

Arul Murugan

May 9th, 2008, 06:00 AM

Trane sets up first design facility in Chennai

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai: Trane, the USbased provider of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) services, has launched its first design centre in India in Chennai.
“The centre would address the global needs of Trane,” Prakash Bedapudi, vice president, engineering and technology, Trane Commercial Systems said.
The centre, located at the Ascendas IT park, would initially focus on embedded controls and application software. “Chennai is the ideal location for us to expand because of the city’s strength in software development and human capital,” Bedapudi said. The market for HVAC services in India is estimated to be around $3 billion and is growing rapidly, Trane officials said. The Chennai centre, the seventh for Trane globally, would house more than 200 professionals in the next two years. The centre would have validation and verification capabilities as well.
Trane has initiated discussions with premier technology institutes for placement and collaborative research. “Since the centre is located in a region with a large supply of engineering talent, it can help accelerate new feature additions and reduce time for new product introductions,” Bedapudi said.

From TOI

Arul Murugan

May 9th, 2008, 06:03 AM

Office space: Chennai set to pip Hyd, B’lore

Jayaraj Sivan | TNN

Chennai: Chennai will overtake Bangalore and Hyderabad in providing new IT and non-IT space this year. While the city and its suburbs will create close to 15 million sq ft this year, Bangalore will be way behind with just 10 million sq ft and Hyderabad still behind with only 8 million sq ft , according to a report by realty consultant CB Richard Ellis. Delhi (15 million sq ft) — including Gurgaon and Noida — will share the honours with Chennai. However, the two metros will be next only to Mumbai (including Thane, Powai and New Mumbai) which will lead the tally with 17 million sq ft.
The 1.5 crore sq ft additional office space in Chennai would bring in an investment of Rs 5,250 crore through civil works and interiors alone. Last year, Bangalore, with 13 million sq ft, was ahead of Chennai (10 million sq ft) and Hyderabad (4 million sq ft). In 2007, Delhi provided 14 million sq ft office space. In the first quarter this year, Chennai generated close to 2.3 million sq ft, out of which, about 1.5 million sq ft was absorbed by various companies. In the second quarter, the supply will be less than 2 million sq ft. By the end of the third quarter, it would cross 10 million sq ft in Chennai and it would near 15 million sq ft by the end of the year.
Overall, if the generated space is fully occupied, it would create 1.5 lakh new job opportunities in the city. The report said due to high rentals in central business districts (CBD) in most Indian cities, corporates were shifting from prime locations to outlying areas. Very little office space is being added in CBDs.
In the CBD rentals, Nariman Point, Fort and Cuff Parade in Mumbai top the list with a per sq ft rental of Rs 450 per month. The highest in Delhi is Rs 340 per sq ft in Connaught Place. Rentals on MG Road (Rs 80), Bangalore, Anna Salai (Rs 78), Chennai and Banjara Hills (Rs 65) in Hyderabad are far below Powai (Rs 100) in Mumbai or Shivaji Nagar (Rs 100) in Pune. Companies to absorb space in Anna Salai, T Nagar and Radhakrishnan Salai in Chennai during Q1 are Quintegra Solutions (67,500 sq ft), Axis Bank (20,000 sq ft), Atmel Technologies (19,000 sq ft), and NSE (10,000 sq ft). In suburban areas of Chennai, India Infoline took 2.2 lakh sq ft and Satyam 4 lakh sq ft.

from TOI

paduraj55

May 11th, 2008, 06:16 PM

Mahindra Research Valley (MRV) spread over 150 acres in Mahindra World City (MWC)

source - http://www.business-standard.com/common/news_article.php?autono=322610&leftnm=1&subLeft=0&chkFlg=

India honing edge in auto design, R&D software

Danny Goodman & Kirtika Suneja / New Delhi May 11, 2008
The increasing use of high-end software in automobile design and R&D has made Indian auto majors leverage the country's software prowess and gain an edge over their European and American competitors.

Most are expanding their research and design services either organically or by acquisitions, which will enable them to launch newer models in the market quickly and efficiently in the coming years.

By June 2009, the $6 billion Mahindra & Mahindra group (M&M) will open its new $116 million automobile design and development facility called the Mahindra Research Valley (MRV) spread over 150 acres in Mahindra World City in Chennai. Primarily, this R&D facility will cater to M&M's design needs, and later may consider doing similar high-end work for other OEMs.

Tata Motors has six R&D centres that span India, South Korea, Spain and the UK. In 2006, the Tatas acquired INCAT – now an arm of Tata Technologies – that conducts specialised R&D work for the Tata Group and others. Recently, Tata Motors bought a minority stake in Italian car design firm, Pininfarina, which has designed some landmark Ferraris.

In April this year, French major Dassault Systemes tied up with Argentum Engineering Design's (AED) Centre for Excellence to train automobile engineers who would design, test, validate and manufacture new vehicle models for domestic and international OEMs.

According to a Nasscom report, the automobile and aerospace design industry is currently estimated at $ 144 billion, in which India's current share is valued between $3 billion and $5 billion annually.

This amount is estimated to increase to around $16 billion over the next two to three years. Global spending on engineering services is expected to touch $1.1 trillion by 2020.

Outsourcing to India will touch over $ 50 billion by then.

High-end software like 3D, PLM, and V5 provided by software majors like Dassault Systemes, Siemens and IBM have revolutionised the way new models of vehicles are designed, tested, and manufactured. The advantages of using Indian software talent are obviously in costs. Indian engineering talent is 45 per cent cheaper than an American counterpart.

The savings in time and money gained by using high-end software are also obvious. "We are aware of anything between 25 and 40 per cent savings in time achieved by auto majors when launching a ‘concept to manufacture' programme," said Vivek Marwah, country marketing head, Siemens PLM.

In high performance motorsport, where turnaround time is essential, applications like PLM have reduced design time. Toyota Motorsport uses Dassault Systemes' PLM solutions to reduce aerodynamics design time by 80 per cent and achieve the first-physical assembly of the car in only two days, compared to three weeks previously. For an F1 racing team, time saved off the track is crucial.

Costs saved in building and testing models are equally substantial. "Earlier, we used to build 50 vehicles for crash tests. Now after using virtual crash tests, we use only about 40 units," explains Dr Arun Jaura, chief technology officer, Mahindra & Mahindra.

The costs saved in tests like these vary depending upon the skill sets of engineers and the country's regulatory agency requirements. Another testing expert said most new car models launched in Europe now undergo only one physical crash test, while the rest are simulated. The costs of constructing test prototypes can be enormous.

Despite a significant amount of contribution from Indian engineers in the development of models like the Swift, Dzire and SX4, Maruti Suzuki still relies on Suzuki, Japan for training its engineers, though the automaker plans to increase its R&D strength to 1,000 by 2010.

And players like Argentum hope to offer the same in India through its tie-up with France's Dassault Systemes. "Through this tie-up, we hope to train engineers who will produce engineering solutions, and not software people to do the same," said S D Pradhan, CEO, Argentum Engineering Design.

Currently, India enjoys a reputation as a provider of low-end research work that revolve around small cars. The current challenge is to change that perception. "The country has had a reputation for low-end design work. In setting up the Mahindra Research Valley, we would demonstrate to become the epicentre of engineering design and development for high-end work. We have the potential," said Dr Jaura.

India's journey to becoming the world's hub for automobile design and development may not be easy. "Opportunities are plenty, but competition abounds. China, Latin America, East Europe... each one with certain natural advantages," said R Srinivasan, executive vice-president, Avtec, a Hindustan Motors subsidiary.

TechCity

May 13th, 2008, 06:57 AM

source:http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/13/stories/2008051353070400.htm
CHENNAI: The foundation stone for the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) Innovation Centre at Anna University was laid on Monday. It aims at becoming a landmark institution in research and development.

Speaking at the function, Union Communications and IT Minister A. Raja stressed the importance of reaching the benefits of technology. Though the IT sector had grown exponentially, the outcome had to be measured on the basis of its influence on the lives of the common man. The very concept of ubiquitous computing was all about access to anything, anywhere and at any time.

Mr. Raja said a major initiative of the Centre in spreading the benefits of IT and other technologies to the rural population was the establishment of one lakh Internet-enabled Common Service Centres (CSCs) across the country.

Bridging the divide

The CSCs will bridge the digital divide by providing villagers access to Web portals that facilitate online transactions for public utilities, he said. The Tamil Nadu government, which pioneered computer education in schools in 1996 during the previous government led by the Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, is committed to facilitating the evolvement of the C-DAC innovation centre into a global trailblazer, he said. He assured officials of C-DAC and Anna University that hurdles would be removed.

M. Madhavan Nambiar, Special Secretary, Department of Information Technology, said the innovation centre would facilitate an environment for harvesting ideas and solutions customised to real-life contexts.

The focus

The 20-year-old C-DAC, with a network of 10 laboratories and 2,500 members, is focussing on ubiquitous computing, grid computing and propagation of free and open source software. Another initiative is the development of Bharat Operating Systems and Solutions, a GNU/Linux distribution developed by C-DAC for enhancing the use of free/open source software throughout the country, he said. In his presidential address, Anna University Vice-Chancellor D. Viswanathan said the innovation centre would serve as technology incubator and a platform for customised solutions. A. Ramakrishnan, director general, C-DAC, and C. Chandramouli, IT Secretary, were present.

Mr. Raja later told newsmen that the BlackBerry imbroglio over data security would be resolved soon. Research in Motion, manufacturer of the product, had been asked to make out his case in two months. Mr. Raja said more telecom players would be entering the market. The first batch of operators with new licences was in Tamil Nadu. When more players entered telecom circles across the country, tariffs would fall to 25 paise intra-circle.

senthil2001msk

May 13th, 2008, 08:58 AM

New Delhi, May 13: After making a wave worldwide with unveiling of the cheapest car from India, Tata Motors on Tuesday said it will consider exporting the Rs 1-lakh car to many promising Markets, including the US.

"There is nothing that we can not export Nano to any country. Tata Motors also has plans for exports. But the Tata Nano will be initially marketed in India," Tata Motors spokesperson said.

The announcement comes close on the heels of the US publication Conde Nast Portfolio's report that 'Nano' would not be sold in the US.

"The model (Nano) won't be sold in the US but has the potential to radically alter the market for manufacturers here. Tata-inspired followers are already revving up their engines," Conde Nast Portfolio reported while naming Ratan Tata as one of the 73 biggest brains around the world.

The spokesman, however, said that after positioning firm in the domestic market, the company would consider exporting the car.

"The company has not yet finalised specific exports Markets and timelines. The Nano will meet the prevalent norms of any country it is marketed in," the spokesperson said without mentioning any specific country, including the US.

Tata Motors usually does not export any of its products in the first few years of launch, he added.

The list of '73 Biggest Brains in Business', compiled by Conde Nast Portfolio, featured Tata for his 2,500 dollar car - Nano, along with the likes of media mogul Rupert Murdoch and chief executive of investment bank Goldman Sachs Lloyd Blankfein.

Tata Group, which recently snapped up British luxury brands Jaguar and Land Rover for a 2.3 billion dollar deal, had unveiled the world's cheapest car 'Nano' during the Delhi Auto Expo this year and roll out is due in the second half of this year.

To compete with Nano, Bajaj Auto Ltd, the country's second largest two-wheeler maker, yesterday announced a joint venture with Renault-Nissan to produce a 2,500 dollar car. The 'ULC' code-named car, which would be rolled out from a brand new plant in Chakan (Maharashtra), would be available in the Indian market by 2011.

In the recent times, the Indian auto market has caught the fancy of many global players too. US car maker General Motors had announced it would introduce a small car here by 2010, which would be priced below its existing vehicle in the segment 'Spark'.

Last month, Japanese major Toyota announced a Rs 1,400 crore investment in its Chennai plant to launch a 'strategic small car' within next 2-3 years....

http://www.financialexpress.com/news/Tata-may-export-Nano-to-promising-markets/308955/

senthil2001msk

May 13th, 2008, 09:00 AM

PUNE/MUMBAI/NEW DELHI: Bajaj Auto, France’s Renault and Japan’s Nissan will sign a formal agreement next month for making their proposed small car in India, scheduled to be launched by 2011. According to sources close to the development, the yet-to-be-named ultra low-cost car — said to challenge the Tata Nano — would have most of the features of the concept car that was displayed at the Auto Expo in January and would be priced at $2,500 (slightly more than Rs 1 lakh), even in 2011.

On Monday, the three companies announced their intention to “develop, produce and market” the $2,500 car. Bajaj Auto managing director Rajiv Bajaj, Renault president and CEO Carlos Ghosn and Nissan said the JV will develop and market the car “at a wholesale price range starting from $2,500.” Bajaj will own 50% in the JV, while the rest would equally be held by Renault and Nissan.

The $2,500 tag will be ex-factory price, including excise and other levies, but excluding VAT, octroi, sales tax and local municipal tax. “The announced price will be effective till the car is actually launched in the market,” said Nissan spokesperson Simon Sproule. “The price has been decided keeping in view of the future changes in pricing of car material and other inputs. It will not include any of the taxes and costs outside the manufacturing plant that will be borne by the customers.”

According to sources, the car will be manufactured at a plant to be built at Chakan near Pune. Here, Bajaj owns 250 acres of land, close to its motorcycle plant.

Earlier, the Tamil Nadu government had lobbied for the plant to be located in the state. MNC carmakers like Ford, Hyundai and Mitsubishi already have plants in Tamil Nadu.
The new plant will have the capacity to manufacture 4 lakh units annually, with sales of the car scheduled to start in India by early 2011. “India is the primary market for the car, which has growth potential in other emerging markets around the world,” an official statement noted.

While a major part of the concept and development of the car will be done in India, key inputs in critical areas of product development such as design, powertrain and chassis will be incorporated from Renault-Nissan’s global R&D centres. “All companies will have specific areas of development and will utilise their skills to develop the new car at the announced cost,” Mr Sproule said.

Senior Bajaj Auto officials declined to comment on questions related to investments, badging, marketing and distribution as the MoU is yet to be signed. Renault India officials declined to comment since Mr Ghosn is expected to make a statement in Tokyo on Tuesday.

Bajaj Auto had signed an MoU with Maharashtra government in August 2006 for a 250-acre, Rs 1,750-crore project to manufacture three- and four-wheelers at Chakan. Bajaj Auto officials said the site is the same, although they have now brought in a global partner for the low-cost car.

Industry sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the $2,500 price was a starting point; the vehicle could have more features and carry a higher price tag. However, the engine on a higher-variant car would not differ much, from the 600-700 cc engine that the base level model is expected to have.

The Bajaj Auto-Renault-Nissan statement said: “The feasibility has already extended into joint product development and the project is on line to meet targeted performance and cost.”

Bajaj Auto had showcased the Bajaj Lite, its small concept car designed in-house, at the Auto Expo in Delhi in January 2008. This was its “expression of intent and ideas”, some of which are expected to find expression in the car, company officials said.

Analysts and industry watchers added that given Mr Ghosn’s public statements, it was natural that the French-Japanese company would ensure the local partner has the leadership role as it would create better relationship in the long run. Sources added that Bajaj Auto is not likely to offer a stake in the parent company to the French-Japanese auto combine and hence is setting up a separate JV.

senthil2001msk

May 13th, 2008, 09:13 AM

Mumbai, New Delhi, May 12 Two-wheeler manufacturer Bajaj Auto, together with France’s Renault SAS and Japan’s Nissan Motor Company, will float a joint venture (JV) company to develop, produce and market a low-priced car codenamed ULC in India by 2011. The starting price of the car will be $2,500, akin to Tata Motors’ Nano, unveiled early this year.

Bajaj Auto will hold 50% in the JV, while Renault and Nissan will hold 25% each. The trio will also set up a new plant at Chakan in Pune for the car. The Companies refused to disclose the investment for the new plant.

“We (Renault-Nissan) will provide the know-how while Bajaj will bring the knowledge of Indian customers and the automotive industry,” said Simon Sproule, corporate VP, global communications, Nissan. This project will be managed separately from the Renault-Nissan alliance project in Chennai. However, the alliance plans to use engineering resources from the Chennai development centre for the ULC project.
Sproule added that the price of the car may be revised by 2011 with the integration of new regulations such as Euro IV emission regulations and macroeconomic evolutions such as steel and other raw material prices.

An analyst with Angel Broking, said, “Tata Nano will definitely have the first mover advantage and will define this new segment in the automobile industry.” “We will be signing the memorandum of understanding (MoU) by June,” said S Ravikumar, VP, business development, Bajaj Auto. “We have already acquired 250 acres of land for the plant that will have an initial production capacity of four lakh units per year.”

The small car market in India is hotting up with all global players, including Honda Siel Car India, General Motor India and Ford Motor India, planning to manufacture small cars in the country. While, Honda’s small car offering is expected to hit Indian roads in 2009, GM has gone on record saying that the company would come up with a product that will be priced lower than its existing small car Spark.

Even Ford plans to launch its small car in the country in 2010. Compact cars constitute 71.4% of the total passenger cars sold in the country.

senthil2001msk

May 13th, 2008, 09:18 AM

Chennai, May 12 (IANS) India’s Bajaj Auto Ltd will set up a join venture (JV) with the Renault-Nissan alliance to produce and market small cars - but priced higher than Tata Nano, the companies announced Monday. While Bajaj Auto will hold 50 percent in the new entity, Renault and Nissan will share the balance equally.

The small cars will be produced at a new plant to be built in Chakan, Maharashtra. Sales will start in early 2011 in India, the companies said.

For Bajaj Auto, the project is important as Tata Nano will be a serious threat for its three wheeler business.

In another development, a Renault official told IANS that the Renault-Nissan joint venture, set up to manufacture mid-sized cars, has started levelling the ground at its plant near Chennai.

Bulk of the required 670 acres for the 400,000-unit capacity plant at Oragadum has been acquired, said the official, who wished not to be identified.

The company is expected to do the ‘bhoomi puja’ early next month and start commercial production during the first quarter of 2010.

Subra

May 13th, 2008, 12:29 PM

Last month, Japanese major Toyota announced a Rs 1,400 crore investment in its Chennai plant to launch a 'strategic small car' within next 2-3 years....

http://www.financialexpress.com/news/Tata-may-export-Nano-to-promising-markets/308955/

Toyota ia expanding near Bangalore. Press people don't even validate before publishing it. :ohno:

greatchennai

May 13th, 2008, 03:31 PM

Toyota ia expanding near Bangalore. Press people don't even validate before publishing it. :ohno:

http://inhome.rediff.com/money/2008/may/13tata.htm

Last month, Japanese major Toyota announced a Rs 1,400 crore (Rs 14 billion) investment in its Chennai plant to launch a 'strategic small car' within next 2-3 years.

slakhs

May 13th, 2008, 10:37 PM

http://inhome.rediff.com/money/2008/may/13tata.htm

Last month, Japanese major Toyota announced a Rs 1,400 crore (Rs 14 billion) investment in its Chennai plant to launch a 'strategic small car' within next 2-3 years.

Both articles have been sourced from PTI and so the same error is repeated. Toyota plant is in Bangalore and expanding in Bangalore.

Cheers
Slakhs

Subra

May 13th, 2008, 11:43 PM

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Business/India_Business/Daimler-Hero_JV_to_set_up_unit_in_Chennai/articleshow/3037642.cms

CHENNAI: In yet another sign of Chennai's growing status as an automobile hub, the world's largest truck maker Daimler in partnership with Munjal's of Hero group has now chosen to locate their commercial vehicle manufacturing unit in Oragadam, about 40 kms from the city. The venture will invest Rs 4,400 crore over a five-year period. Chennai pipped other locations in Maharastra and Haryana to attract this big ticket investment. An announcement to this effect is likely to be made soon.

According to sources, the Daimler-Hero combine will be allotted around 400 acres in the state's SIPCOT Industrial Park in Oragadam, on the fringes of Chennai. The greenfield plant would produce a new brand of low cost vehicles for the Indian market, besides acting as a base for exports.

Government sources confirmed that 'preliminary meetings' with Daimler indeed took place sometime back and that the manufacturer was shown the Oragadam park as a possible location. "As of now, the ball is in their court. They have to revert to us with their nod," sources said. The venture was signed last month and at that time, Sunil Kant Munjal of the Hero Group said that the first vehicles would be rolled out in 2010.

Daimler will hold a 60% stake in the venture while Hero the rest. Plans are to produce light, medium and heavy-duty vehicles with an initial capacity of 70,000 units. Daimler will contribute Rs 1,386 crore to the JV and Hero Rs 900 crore, while the rest would be raised through debt.

Officials at Hero Group did not wish to comment on this. "We will take a decision in six to eight weeks time. We are in talks with TN government also," sources said.

Tamil Nadu has a policy called the 'ultra mega integrated automobile projects policy', to attract big ticket investments in the auto sector. Any investment over and above Rs 4,000 crore qualifies for benefits under this policy. Some features include concessional rates for land allotment and exemption from stamp duty. Power supply is to be provided by Tamil Nadu Electricity Board through dual feeder lines with the cost of feeder lines borne by the power utility and units made exempt from electricity tax.

Along with government sops, the existing eco-system for auto-component manufacturing, the large talent pool of engineering graduates and the proximity to an international port has proved to be a heady cocktail. Already, the city is home to Hyundai, Ford, BMW, Mitsubishi, besides Ashok Leyand and TAFE.
----------------------------------------------------------------

I am keeping my fingers crossed folks. Hope an MOU will be signed soon.

nashcode

May 14th, 2008, 07:27 AM

^^
stupid TOI ... such a misleading headline at such an early stage :ohno:

anyways, I hope TN gets this project.

kpgopal

May 14th, 2008, 08:21 AM

^^
stupid TOI ... such a misleading headline at such an early stage :ohno:

anyways, I hope TN gets this project.

I kind of agree. TOI has been giving sensational news which finally turn out to be untrue ( eg: the flip flop over the airport expansion). Not been a great start by them in Chennai ( at least with regard to authenticity). Hence we will have to wait for official news before we are sure about the Daimler - Hero project.

Into_salem

May 14th, 2008, 02:40 PM

Nissan plans an entry-level car
14 May 2008, 0207 hrs IST,Pankaj Doval,TNN

NEW DELHI: A day after announcing a low-cost $2500 car in partnership with Bajaj, Nissan has chalked out plans to also go solo and introduce an entry-level car in India by early 2010. The car, with 90% localisation, will be priced aggressively in the volume segment.

"Nissan will compete in the entry-car with a dedicated platform that will be used for at least three models built in five leading competitive countries (LCCs), the first of which will be produced in Thailand and India in early 2010," Carlos Ghosn, president and CEO of Nissan, said.

Speaking at Nissan's earnings conference at Tokyo, he said the A-platform models would be easy to source and localise in LCCs, "supporting a high level of cost competitiveness while offering an attractive vehicle choice" for entry-car customers. "Today, Nissan has zero entry-car sales, so there is plenty of room for improvement," he said.

The car would be launched as part of Nissan's plans to develop a family of global entry cars aimed at offering "affordable models" to a larger section of society. "Our plans are twofold: First, Nissan cars based on a new A platform and, below, a Nissan version of the alliance ultra-low-cost car, being developed with Bajaj and planned to be launched in 2011," Ghosn said.

In India, Nissan plans to spread through JVs as it also pursues its solo run. While it is investing Rs 4500 crore for a facility in Chennai along with parent Renault, the company will launch light commercial vehicles in partnership with Ashok Leyland and the Nano rival ultra low-cost car with Bajaj. "In India, our volume is expected to increase to more than 200,000 units in fiscal year 2012," Ghosn said.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Business/Nissan_plans_an_entry-level_car/articleshow/3037697.cms

svel

May 14th, 2008, 02:57 PM

^^
stupid TOI ... such a misleading headline at such an early stage :ohno:

anyways, I hope TN gets this project.
Nothing specific to Chennai edition. This is the way TOI works all over India.:wallbash: Generally they project the local city as the great one in the local editions so that the circulation increases. If you see the Bangalore edition, they will project Bangalore as the great city. This is marketing technique.

Arasu

May 14th, 2008, 06:19 PM

Subra

May 14th, 2008, 08:28 PM

Subra,

You get very much involved in the progress and development of the city and the state gauging from your posts in these forums. Can you step up and take up leadership roles/acitivities even outside of the forum too?

You can count on the support of similar minded forumers such as myself.

Thanks man. I am willing to do things that can help improve the image of the state. Please come out with any suggestions.

chennaimetroblogs

May 14th, 2008, 11:41 PM

http://www.blonnet.com/2008/05/14/stories/2008051451961000.htm

New Delhi, May 13 The Ministry of Civil Aviation has said that the modernisation of Chennai and Kolkata airports is being delayed due to the constant objections being raised by the Planning Commission on the scale and size of these airports.

A letter from the Ministry to the Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, Mr Montek Singh Ahluwalia, points out that the airports are getting delayed despite the Committee on Infrastructure, which is headed by the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, having ‘categorically approved’ the projects.

Sources said that the letter was written by the Minister for Civil Aviation, Mr Praful Patel.

The communication adds that the plans for the two airports were drawn up keeping in view the needs of the country 10-20 years down the line and also so as not to repeat the past mistakes made at the time of construction of the current IGI airport international terminal in the Capital.

The letter was sent a day after the Deputy Chairman held a review meeting with officials of Delhi Airport Private Ltd (DIAL), the joint venture company set up to manage the modernisation of the airport.

Arasu

May 14th, 2008, 11:57 PM

Thanks man. I am willing to do things that can help improve the image of the state. Please come out with any suggestions.

How about guiding/pushing the government/departments into formulating proactive policies for the betterment of the state and better governance in general? There are lots of ideas being generated here and they can be channelled to policy making bodies. If need be new threads can be opened to welcome ideas on several fronts ( such as Traffic management, Industrial policies, Educational systems, etc), we can follow up with respective bodies as on organisation, MPs, MLAs etc.

Can we organise ourselves to pull up any government bodies that do not respond to peoples needs and by making a representation to them collectively?

Can we open a thread to appreciate people/organisations that serve the state commendably and communicate our appreciation to them?

Many of the forumers understand the needs of the cities they hail from. Can they get together and meet and get the public involved somehow in an information campaign in an effort to push for a better local governance?

Fusionist

May 15th, 2008, 01:10 AM

How about guiding/pushing the government/departments into formulating proactive policies for the betterment of the state and better governance in general? There are lots of ideas being generated here and they can be channelled to policy making bodies. If need be new threads can be opened to welcome ideas on several fronts ( such as Traffic management, Industrial policies, Educational systems, etc), we can follow up with respective bodies as on organisation, MPs, MLAs etc

This is precisely how so many people think and thats why so many political parties and NGOs, trying to do it all.. and this is precisely why most of them fail.

The prime theme in SSC is architecture, construction transportation and infrastructure. Lets stick to those issues. If pro-active measures have to be taken then again it need to stick to the relevent issues ( and only with the relevent bodies ) rather than broadening things and politicing everything.

chennaimetroblogs

May 15th, 2008, 01:44 AM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/15/stories/2008051559560300.htm

Work on the southern arm of Inner Ring Road (IRR), to link two crucial arterial roads in south Chennai through some of the fast developing localities around Velachery and Nanganallur, is progressing in full swing.

The State Highways Department, the implementing agency, has initiated the road development work simultaneously from both ends — near the Velachery MRTS station (Velachery Main Road) and Grand Southern Trunk Road.

The five-kilometre project involves creating a four-lane road each on both sides of the proposed MRTS network from Velachery to St. Thomas Mount stations. After some distance, the road will be a single three-lane corridor. On completion, the Rs.95-crore project is expected to reduce travel time for residents of many of the localities and congestion on the two busy roads.

Out of the total cost, a little over Rs.60 crore is towards land acquisition and the rest for project, including laying the road and creating associated facilities such as culverts. While the road is scheduled to be opened by early 2009, the black-topping will be completed by the first quarter, says an official.

Detailing the project, he says the IRR arm from Velachery Main Road will have two 30-feet (four lane) roads below the flyover, near the MRTS station. Two bridges, with an elevated track for MRTS between them, are to be constructed over the Adambakkam lake.

The MRTS elevated network will be above the bridge. Metropolitan Transport Project, which is executing the MRTS work, has started pile foundation work for the elevated tracks. A railway official says two railway stations - Puzhuthivakkam and Adambakkam – will come up between Velachery and St. Thomas Mount.

On the Velachery side, the department is constructing two culverts to facilitate free flow of water from one side of Pallikaranai swamp to the other. A ‘kuccha’ road has been laid below the Velachery flyover on both sides of Velachery Main Road till Balaji Nagar Main Road. On GST Road end, work to link the IRR arm with the Thillai Ganga Nagar subway is in progress. About 40 per cent of the road work has been completed. Land acquisition too is over, except for 700 metres near Vanuvampet. A total of 65 houses, comprising both buildings and thatched huts have to be acquired for the project, the highways official says.

Construction of four culverts between Balaji Nagar Main Road in Ullagaram-Puzhuthivakkam and the Velachery Station are part of the project for channelling rainwater from Veerangal Odai and Velachery Canal to the southern side of the Pallikaranai swamp. A temporary canal has been created on both sides of the ‘kuccha’ road to channel the rainwater to the Pallikaranai swamp and prevent flooding of nearby residential colonies. There is also a proposal to construct a permanent canal on both sides of the road and subsequently increase width of the road.

Arasu

May 15th, 2008, 02:01 AM

This is precisely how so many people think and thats why so many political parties and NGOs, trying to do it all.. and this is precisely why most of them fail.

The prime theme in SSC is architecture, construction transportation and infrastructure. Lets stick to those issues. If pro-active measures have to be taken then again it need to stick to the relevent issues ( and only with the relevent bodies ) rather than broadening things and politicing everything.

Fusionist,

I don't understand why we should limit ourselves to reading about the developments only and not proactively shape the policies even if they are to be confined to architecture, construction and infrastructure. I am not saying that all these have to be done within the SSC forum. This forum can be used as a platform.

If you have alternative and constructive ideas please share.

Subra

May 15th, 2008, 04:06 AM

Raj_network

May 15th, 2008, 04:09 PM

DUBAI: The United Arab Emirates' (UAE) national carrier Etihad Airways will start daily operations to Chennai and Kozhikode in India from Aug 1 this year.

"Etihad will start operations from Abu Dhabi to Chennai and Kozhikode effective Aug 1," Vijay Poonoosamy, Etihad Airways' head of government and international affairs, told IANS on phone from Abu Dhabi.

"This will take the total number of destinations Etihad flies to in India to six," he said.

As of now the Abu Dhabi-based airline, one of the four national carriers of this Gulf nation, flies to New Delhi, Mumbai, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram.

According to the new schedule, Etihad's daily flights to Kozhikode will leave Abu Dhabi at 11.35 p.m. local time and reach the Kerala city at 5 am. The return flight will leave Kozhikode at 5.45 a.m. and reach Abu Dhabi at 8 am.

On the Chennai sector, the flight will leave Abu Dhabi at 8.50 am on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays and reach the Tamil Nadu capital at 2.45 pm.

It will take off from Chennai at 3.15 pm and reach the UAE capital at 5.45 pm.

On Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, the flight will leave Abu Dhabi at 1.45 pm and reach Chennai at 7.25 pm.

The return flight on these four days will leave Chennai at 8.20 p.m. and reach Abu Dhabi at 10.50 p.m.

"Etihad is looking to expanding its list of destinations and India figures very prominently in its plans," Poonoosamy said.

There are around 1.5 million expatriate Indians in the UAE. :cheers:

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Airlines__Aviation/Etihad_Airways_adds_Chennai_Kozhikode_to_Indian_destinations/articleshow/3040200.cms

vijayvmail

May 15th, 2008, 04:37 PM

Subra

May 15th, 2008, 07:39 PM

Subra

May 15th, 2008, 08:56 PM

Looks like CPCL is looking at the PCPIR region being planned in Cuddalore-Nagapattinam region. That would be great as industries will start spreading out from Chennai.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.indiaprwire.com/businessnews/20080515/30114.htm

City-based petroleum company Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited (CPCL) is looking for locations on the southern coast for its proposed refinery-cum-petrochemical complex in Tamil Nadu, a company official said here Thursday.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/05/16/stories/2008051650770300.htm

Chennai, May 15 Indian Oil Corporation’s 15-million tonne greenfield refinery at Ennore near Chennai would have been the single largest investment that the state of Tamil Nadu might see. At today’s costs, the project would cost $ 12 billion (Rs 40,000 crore).

However, going by the indications thrown by Mr Sarthak Behuria, Chairman and Managing Director of IOC, at a press conference here today, the project may never come up.
:ohno:
Status of project

Asked about the status of the project, Mr Behuria noted that there was already surplus refining capacity in the country and that many other companies had announced huge refineries.

He stressed that the project was only on the long-term horizon and would not be taken up in the Eleventh plan period (2007-2012).

The project has been talked about for close to three years now.

A press release from IOC’s subsidiary, Chennai Petroleum Corporation, says that joint surveys with the Tamil Nadu government “have led to identification of 3,300 acres of lands for the project.”

“Prior to acquisition of this land, we are pursuing with Ministry of Environment and Forests and Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board regarding the acceptability of the identified location from the environment angle,” the release says.

Sources in the state government say that that much of land is not available at Ennore. It is understood that the government has asked IOC to look at a site near Cuddalore.

:ohno:

Fusionist

May 15th, 2008, 10:02 PM

Fusionist,

I don't understand why we should limit ourselves to reading about the developments only and not proactively shape the policies even if they are to be confined to architecture, construction and infrastructure. I am not saying that all these have to be done within the SSC forum. This forum can be used as a platform.

If you have alternative and constructive ideas please share.

I never said anything that limited us from not making any pro-active measures with respect to architecture & construction. Please re-read my statement carefully before commenting. Also please take this to Chennai Discussions if anything further is to be said.

chennaimetroblogs

May 15th, 2008, 10:52 PM

http://www.blonnet.com/2008/05/16/stories/2008051652542100.htm

Chennai, May 15 Can you imagine reaching the Porur junction from Adyar in about 20 minutes cruising through lush greenery? Sounds impossible with the current state of roads? Well, hold your breath. Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Ltd (TNUIFSL) is working to make this dream come true.

Development Pattern

There has been a clustered development pattern in Chennai — northern belt occupied by petroleum and chemical industries, western part as a manufacturing hub and the South as the IT destination. This has led to roads which are chock-a-block with traffic.

The city has about 2,500 km of roads and widening them is impossible due to saturation of room in the roads.

Speaking to Business Line, the advisor of TNUIFSL, Dr M. S. Srinivasan, says due to the rapid growth of motor vehicle population in Chennai, most corridors exceed 1 lakh passenger car units per day, resulting in capacity saturation.

The idea

Hence, based on the State Government’s advice, TNUIFSL has conceived an idea to re-route traffic through newly identified corridors and connecting links along the cleaned-up river water courses of the city and integrating them with the initiatives taken by National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).

Totally nine alignments have been identified, which will have four circular routes within the city interconnecting the existing roads and vantage points. This will add another 120 km of roads to the city. Interestingly, these roads can be laid out without disturbing the existing traffic, he says.

The project focuses on reducing the width of river bodies such as Adyar, Mambalam and Buckingham canals to the required level without affecting the flow, and uses the reclaimed space for constructing parks, promenades and roads, said the Assistant Vice President of TNUIFSL, Ms R. Gayathri. About 50 per cent of the 120 km length of the road will be constructed by the State Government at a cost of Rs 40 crore a km, she adds.

Mobility

Dr Srinivasan hopes that the project will enhance the mobility of the city as it will ease inter and intra-city traffic besides creating clean river water systems.

“The feasibility study relating to various alignments in the proposed 120-km stretch and a detailed report on the Adyar river front project will be taken up soon,” he says. Recently, TNUIFSL invited bids from international consultants for this project. The study will be completed in about nine months and execution is expected in 24 months, he adds.

In addition, the project proposes to introduce Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) and a dedicated passage for two/three-wheelers. The study also aims to develop a revenue model to make the project self-sustainable, he says. The study will examine the possibility of relocating the slums in situ. The Government plans to implement the project through the Adyar Poonga Trust, which engaged TNUIFSL to develop and assist in execution of the project, he says.

Initially, the Adyar alignment will be taken up as an integrated riverfront development project. The cost of the project is likely to be Rs 2,300 crore and may eventually become self-sustaining, he adds.

chennaimetroblogs

May 15th, 2008, 10:59 PM

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/05/16/stories/2008051651480400.htm

Sriperumbudur, May 15 Nokia’s two key suppliers — Aspocomp and Wintek — are likely to start operations within three months in the Nokia Telecom Park at Sriperumbudur, 45 km west off Chennai. Then, the Finnish telecom major will have all its seven major suppliers in the park, strengthening its delivery capabilities.

Mr Sachin Saxena, Director, Operations and Logistics, Nokia India, said by 2009 the park will have twice the number of workforce of around 30,000.

Nokia’s suppliers inside the park are: Salcomp (for chargers), Aspocomp (printed circuit boards), Foxconn (mechanics), Perlos (plastic components), Jabil (plastic components), Laird (antennas that go inside the mobile handsets) and Wintek (LCDs), he told newspersons at the Nokia plant here.

At present, most of the components are imported. However, with Aspocomp and Wintek coming in, the park (spread in 210 acres) will ensure that Nokia has a “consistent supply of lowest total cost material services from reliable, collaborative sources of global and local suppliers”, he said. ‘Many more vendors are coming to Chennai, but will be located outside the park. We do not have space inside,” he said.Production, investment

Nokia’s Chennai plant crossed a cumulative production of 125 million units in March. The company has so far invested $210 million, and an additional sum of $75 million is to be invested this year. Half the production is sold in India; the rest is exported to West Asia, Africa and South-East countries.

high-end handsets

So far, the focus has been on manufacturing ‘entry level’ handsets here. But there is scope to move to high-end handsets with the existing infrastructure as and when the demand increases, Mr Saxena said.

Nokia started its India operations in 2005. The operations comprise handset business; R&D facilities in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai; a manufacturing plant in Chennai and a design studio in Bangalore.

Arul Murugan

May 16th, 2008, 04:52 AM

Circular corridor: 10 firms show interest

K .Lakshmi

The selected firm will prepare project report

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/16/images/2008051657780301.jpg

CHENNAI: Ten international consultancy firms have evinced interest in preparing a detailed project report for the High Speed Elevated Circular Corridor project in the city.

Representatives of the firms attended a pre-bid meeting conducted by the Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Limited (TNUIFSL)here on Wednesday. They were briefed on the project and need to study its feasibility, cleaning up waterways and rehabilitation of those living along them. The deadline to submit bids is May 28.

TNUIFSL had invited bids last month on behalf of Adyar Poonga Trust. The project envisages creation of transportation corridors along the major city waterways to reduce traffic congestion on the existing roads . The consultants will be required to study, plan and design the project, covring 120 km . While the TNUIFSL would take up work on 59.5 km, the rest would be by National Highways Authority of India and State Highways department.

The Rs.2,300-crore project proposes to develop four circular corridors linking several areas along the waterways, including the Buckingham canal and the Cooum river. The outer circular corridor would connect important areas in the city from Light House to Chennai Port, including IT Corridor, Maduravoyal, Ennore and Vyasarpadi.

There would also be three inner circular corridors branching out from the major intra city road alignments to decongest the city traffic. While one would connect areas such as Mylapore, Porur, Koyambedu, Anna Nagar, Egmore with Chennai Port, another would link areas such as Triplicane, Ekkaduthangal, Nungambakkam with the port. The third corridor would address the traffic problem in South Chennai by connecting areas, including T.Nagar, West C.I.T. Nagar and Nungambakkam along the Cooum river.

The consultants would need to prepare a report for the Adyar River Front project to be taken up as the first phase. It includes cleaning up the river and building a carriageway for a Bus Rapid Transport System on an elevated corridor from Adyar to Porur. TNUIFSL’s advisor (Roads) M.S. Srinivasan said the project aims at tackling various other problems in addition to the traffic chaos in the city. “We want to identify the pollutants of the waterways and arrest them. There is a plan to establish small sewage treatment plants in slum tenements along the river banks to prevent release of untreated sewage

--------------------------------------------------------------------

4 Circular Corridor with city limits
IRR
Chennai Bye-pass
ORR

Will make 7 ring roads for the city!!

Into_salem

May 16th, 2008, 05:10 AM

Circular corridor: 10 firms show interest

7 ring roads for the city!!

Another good news for all Chennaites.

Into_salem

May 16th, 2008, 05:21 AM

Usman Road flyover to be opened in July

Staff Reporter

— Photo: Chennai Corporation

Nearing completion: Work in progress on the Usman Road flyover on Thursday.

CHENNAI: Mayor M. Subramanian on Thursday announced that the flyover at the Usman Road-Duraisamy Road junction would be opened in July by Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi.

The project is set to be completed ahead of schedule, he said after inspecting the work. He also inspected ongoing work at the G.N. Road-Thirumalai Road junction.

Work on the Usman Road flyover, being built at a cost of Rs. 19.8 crore, started in September last year. The project was to be ready 15 months from the date and is being completed a few months early. Work on 24 pillars has been completed.

The portion of the flyover that would rise on the pillars runs to a length of about 500 metres and the sloping approach would run to 281 m.

The 11-m wide bridge would allow movement of traffic in both directions.

The G.N. Road-Thirumalai Road junction flyover is being constructed at a cost of Rs.16.5 crore and would be completed by December, according to a press release.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/16/stories/2008051658300300.htm

Into_salem

May 16th, 2008, 05:27 AM

A project to speed up mobility and ease traffic in Chennai

Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services’ study

T. Murrali

Chennai, May 15 Can you imagine reaching the Porur junction from Adyar in about 20 minutes cruising through lush greenery? Sounds impossible with the current state of roads? Well, hold your breath. Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Ltd (TNUIFSL) is working to make this dream come true.
Development Pattern

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/9063/chennaicrraa2.jpg

There has been a clustered development pattern in Chennai — northern belt occupied by petroleum and chemical industries, western part as a manufacturing hub and the South as the IT destination. This has led to roads which are chock-a-block with traffic.

The city has about 2,500 km of roads and widening them is impossible due to saturation of room in the roads.

Speaking to Business Line, the advisor of TNUIFSL, Dr M. S. Srinivasan, says due to the rapid growth of motor vehicle population in Chennai, most corridors exceed 1 lakh passenger car units per day, resulting in capacity saturation.
The idea

Hence, based on the State Government’s advice, TNUIFSL has conceived an idea to re-route traffic through newly identified corridors and connecting links along the cleaned-up river water courses of the city and integrating them with the initiatives taken by National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).

Totally nine alignments have been identified, which will have four circular routes within the city interconnecting the existing roads and vantage points. This will add another 120 km of roads to the city. Interestingly, these roads can be laid out without disturbing the existing traffic, he says.

The project focuses on reducing the width of river bodies such as Adyar, Mambalam and Buckingham canals to the required level without affecting the flow, and uses the reclaimed space for constructing parks, promenades and roads, said the Assistant Vice President of TNUIFSL, Ms R. Gayathri. About 50 per cent of the 120 km length of the road will be constructed by the State Government at a cost of Rs 40 crore a km, she adds.
Mobility

Dr Srinivasan hopes that the project will enhance the mobility of the city as it will ease inter and intra-city traffic besides creating clean river water systems.

“The feasibility study relating to various alignments in the proposed 120-km stretch and a detailed report on the Adyar river front project will be taken up soon,” he says. Recently, TNUIFSL invited bids from international consultants for this project. The study will be completed in about nine months and execution is expected in 24 months, he adds.

In addition, the project proposes to introduce Bus Rapid Transit System (BRTS) and a dedicated passage for two/three-wheelers. The study also aims to develop a revenue model to make the project self-sustainable, he says. The study will examine the possibility of relocating the slums in situ. The Government plans to implement the project through the Adyar Poonga Trust, which engaged TNUIFSL to develop and assist in execution of the project, he says.

Initially, the Adyar alignment will be taken up as an integrated riverfront development project. The cost of the project is likely to be Rs 2,300 crore and may eventually become self-sustaining, he adds.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/05/16/stories/2008051652542100.htm

Into_salem

May 16th, 2008, 04:49 PM

Nokia’s key suppliers to start operations near Chennai soon

‘Telecom park will have twice the number of workforce by next year’

Mr Sachin Saxena, Director, Operations and Logistics, Nokia India.

T.E. Raja Simhan
Advertisement

Sriperumbudur, May 15 Nokia’s two key suppliers — Aspocomp and Wintek — are likely to start operations within three months in the Nokia Telecom Park at Sriperumbudur, 45 km west off Chennai. Then, the Finnish telecom major will have all its seven major suppliers in the park, strengthening its delivery capabilities.

Mr Sachin Saxena, Director, Operations and Logistics, Nokia India, said by 2009 the park will have twice the number of workforce of around 30,000.

Nokia’s suppliers inside the park are: Salcomp (for chargers), Aspocomp (printed circuit boards), Foxconn (mechanics), Perlos (plastic components), Jabil (plastic components), Laird (antennas that go inside the mobile handsets) and Wintek (LCDs), he told newspersons at the Nokia plant here.

At present, most of the components are imported. However, with Aspocomp and Wintek coming in, the park (spread in 210 acres) will ensure that Nokia has a “consistent supply of lowest total cost material services from reliable, collaborative sources of global and local suppliers”, he said. ‘Many more vendors are coming to Chennai, but will be located outside the park. We do not have space inside,” he said.
Production, investment

Nokia’s Chennai plant crossed a cumulative production of 125 million units in March. The company has so far invested $210 million, and an additional sum of $75 million is to be invested this year. Half the production is sold in India; the rest is exported to West Asia, Africa and South-East countries.
high-end handsets

So far, the focus has been on manufacturing ‘entry level’ handsets here. But there is scope to move to high-end handsets with the existing infrastructure as and when the demand increases, Mr Saxena said.

Nokia started its India operations in 2005. The operations comprise handset business; R&D facilities in Bangalore, Hyderabad and Mumbai; a manufacturing plant in Chennai and a design studio in Bangalore.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/05/16/stories/2008051651480400.htm

peaceonearth

May 16th, 2008, 05:45 PM

Greenfield airport site feasible, says study

Ananth Krishnan

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Project awaits technical approval

Emphasis on connectivity to site

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CHENNAI: While the Airports Authority of India prepares to begin work on the modernisation and expansion of Chennai airport in the coming weeks, it has also taken the first steps towards starting work on its greenfield airport project in Sriperumbudur.

The AAI has conducted a techno-feasibility study, and an official told The Hindu that the site was feasible for the greenfield airport.

The proposal is currently with the International Civil Aviation Organisation awaiting approval. While the AAI initially planned to construct four runways on the site, it will now build two parallel runways. When completed, the project will take care of Chennai’s aviation requirements “for the next 50 years,” the official said.

The State government has identified 4,820.66 acres of land in Tirumangalam, Mambakkam, Irungulam, Vadamangalam, Padicherry, Sirukilai, Kilai and Sriperumbudur in Sriperumbudur taluk, and Tirupandiyur and Vayalur in Tiruvallur taluk for the project, and around 6,540 people and 1,078 homes will be dislocated by the development.

The lands marked out for the greenfield airport are close to the Chennai-Bangalore National Highway. A State government official said that developing connectivity to the proposed site will be strongly emphasised in the planning for the project as the government was keen on avoiding a repeat of the teething troubles faced in Bangalore and Hyderabad, where similar greenfield airports were set up on the outskirts of the two cities.

The government was also exploring the possibility of providing rail connectivity to the proposed site from the line at Avadi, and also developing the national highway to Sriperumbudur as an expressway concurrently. While the AAI had initially slated the greenfield project for completion before 2015, the go-ahead for the expansion plan at Meenambakkam will give it more time to develop the project.

According to AAI sources, the expansion plan will enhance capacity and meet traffic demands till at least 2016 or 2017. The AAI has invested more than Rs. 1,800 crore in the expansion project, and is expected to keep both airports open.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/16/stories/2008051650030100.htm

Subra

May 16th, 2008, 11:13 PM

http://www.financialexpress.com/news/Gap-in-the-rim/310760/

Chandigarh-based SSWL, manufacturer of steel wheel rims for passenger cars, utility vehicles, two-wheelers and agriculture vehicles, is also on an expansion spree. The company is setting up a new plant in Chennai for Rs 105 crore. “We are raising money through banks, including Axis Bank, State Bank of India and DEG, the German development bank,” said a company spokesperson

Subra

May 16th, 2008, 11:31 PM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/17/stories/2008051750580200.htm

A new cargo airline, Quikjet, will begin operations from Chennai in the second half of June.

Into_salem

May 17th, 2008, 02:08 AM

Garuda airline to launch Chennai, Indonesia direct flight from June

Special Correspondent

The new flight will help to boost trade ties, says Indonesia ambassador

— Photo: K.V. Srinivasan

BUSINESS MEET: Rizali W. Indrakesuma, Indonesia’s acting Ambassador to India (left), S. Vijaikumar Bafna, chairman and president, Hindustan Chamber of Commerce (standing), and Ruslan U Sitepu, Trade Counsellor, Indonesian embassy, in Chennai on Friday.

CHENNAI: Travelling to Indonesia could become much easier next month, when the country’s national airline Garuda’s maiden flight between Chennai and Medan is set to take off.

Indonesia’s acting ambassador to India Rizali W. Indrakesuma told Chennai businessmen on Friday that the new flight would strengthen trade and tourism ties between the two regions.

“The negotiations are in the final stages and we hope the flights will start in June or at latest July,” he said. Garuda representatives are still holding talks with Civil Aviation Ministry officials in New Delhi to ensure that they fulfil all technical criteria to start operations in India.

Speaking on the sidelines of an interactive session with city Chambers of Commerce, Mr. Indrakesuma explained that this would be the first Garuda flight to India since the economic crisis of the late 1990s forced the airline to cut its earlier flight to Mumbai.
Demographic make-up

Asked why the resumption of flights is starting with Chennai, Mr. Indrakesuma said that one factor was the demographic make-up of Medan, in northern Sumatra, which is home to a large number of ethnic south Indians with links to Chennai. Increasing economic relationships with southern India could also be a factor.

Mr. Indrakesuma expects the airline to operate daily flights and later expand operations to Mumbai and Delhi. He hopes this will also increase the tourist inflow from India, which was just over 84,000 last year. Currently, Indian travellers to Indonesia must fly via Singapore or Kuala Lumpur.

Garuda has earlier said that connecting flights from Medan will link Indian passengers to Jakarta and Bali.

The line could also be extended to Singapore, to cash in on the large market for Indian travellers to the city.
Bilateral trade up

On the economic front, bilateral trade has risen, touching more than $5 billion during January to October 2007. By 2010, the two countries aim to increase annual trade value to $15-20 billion, Mr. Indrakesuma said.

He suggested that the two countries explore trade opportunities in mutually beneficial products and technologies. “India is short on energy, while Indonesia has considerable energy in the form of coal and gas, which can be utilised on the basis of long-term contracts. On the other hand, India has a huge surplus of iron ore, while we are facing a shortage of this important material. This can be exported to Indonesia on a long-term basis, he suggested.

Coal mining and metals and machinery manufacture are among the top sectors for recent investment, with recent deals by Tata, Bajaj, TVS, Reliance and Jindal.

The biggest deal on the cards is still under negotiation, according to Mr. Indrakesuma. “Mittal Steel is in talks for a tie-up with our national steel company Krakatau Steel…They are discussing an investment of $10-15 billion,” he revealed.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/17/stories/2008051759831000.htm

Into_salem

May 17th, 2008, 02:32 AM

Encroachments on footpaths go

Staff Reporter

Corporation removed 36 fruit stalls, flower shops and tea stalls

http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/276/2008051758950301ac8.jpg
— Photo: M. Karunakaran

CLEAR SPACE: An earthmover removes encroachments by flower and fruit vendors near the Thiru-Vi-Ka bridge at Adyar on Friday.

Chennai: The Chennai Corporation removed encroachments on footpaths at Adyar near the Thiru-Vi-Ka Bridge on Friday.

According to a press release, the Corporation removed 36 fruit stalls, flower shops and tea stalls.

A total of 12 fruit and flower stalls functioning on the road space before the Corporation stalls near the bridge were removed sometime ago, but were set up again. The vendors said the Corporation had allocated stalls for them inside a complex but they displayed their products on the pavements outside as customers usually patronised only the first few shops inside the complex. S. Bhuvaneshwari, owner of a flower stall, said that the Corporation should provide amenities such as electrical fixtures and water supply in the complex to encourage vendors to sell their wares inside.
http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/17/stories/2008051758950300.htm

Into_salem

May 17th, 2008, 02:33 AM

Expo of IT, telecom products

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI: A three-day trade exhibition featuring IT, consumer electronics and telecom products (Digital Expo 2008) was inaugurated by Information Minister Parithi Illamvazhuthi at the Chennai Trade Centre here on Friday.

Inaugurating the fair, Mr. Illamvazhuthi said it provided an opportunity for buyers and sellers of computers and computer accessories, consumer electronics and information technology to converge at one place.

About 60 companies are taking part in the IT fair including Intel, HP, Fujitsu, Wipro, Sony, Samsung and HCL among others.

Ramesh Natarajan, head of marketing and sales, India operations, Redington India, said the fair would provide a cost effective platform for its vendors, dealers and players of the electronic industry to promote their products.

“This is the first time we are conducting Digital Expo and we are planning to hold it in different parts of the country.”
http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/17/stories/2008051753870500.htm

Into_salem

May 17th, 2008, 02:34 AM

Water supply project work launched

Special Correspondent

Jaipal Reddy calls for greater infusion of funds into projects

CHENNAI: The Union government has sanctioned over Rs. 5,000 crore in the last one and a half years for urban development projects in Tamil Nadu, S. Jaipal Reddy, Union Minister for Urban Development, said here on Friday.

Giving details of various projects approved by the Centre, Mr. Reddy told a function to mark the inauguration of work on a water supply project at Maduravoyal near here that under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), 28 projects had been sanctioned at a cost of Rs. 2,587 crore for implementation in Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai. In the case of small and medium towns’ infrastructure development, 97 schemes, costing Rs. 706 crore, had been cleared.

For the benefit of urban poor in the three cities of the State, 24 projects, estimated to cost Rs. 2,134 crore, had been approved. Similarly, for the urban poor in the small and medium towns, 30 schemes had been cleared.

As for the Chennai Metro Rail, Mr. Reddy said the project had been approved in principle.

He expressed the hope that the foundation stone for the project would be laid in a few months’ time.

Calling for greater infusion of funds into urban development projects, the Union Minister said the allocation for the JNNURM was Rs. 1 lakh crore.

When the Mission was launched, he thought that the amount was “incredibly huge.” But, now, he was of the opinion that it was inadequate. “Urbanisation is going on at a far greater pace than anticipated,” he said.

Describing Tamil Nadu as the most urbanised State, Mr. Reddy said that against the national average of 30 per cent of the people living in cities, 44 per cent of people in Tamil Nadu were living in urban areas.

Commending Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi and Local Administration Minister M.K. Stalin, Mr Reddy called the former “Bishma Pitamaha” of south India. Mr Stalin displayed dynamism. Earlier, the Union Minister called on the Chief Minister in hospital. Mr. Stalin said the cost of the Maduravoyal project is Rs. 23.3 crore. When the project is completed, the per capita supply of water in the area will go up to 135 litres from the present 10 litres.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/17/stories/2008051759800900.htm

peaceonearth

May 17th, 2008, 10:30 PM

Chennai, May 17 : The Union Health Ministry will set up a world class state-of-the-art Vaccine and Medical park at Chengalpet, about 65 km from here, Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss announced today.

Talking to newspersons here, he said of the 400 acre of land available with the Union Health Ministry at Chengalpet, 200 acre would be utilised for setting up the vaccine park and the medical park would come up in the remaining area.

Of the 200 acre meant for vaccine park, 100 would be utilised for setting up a vaccine manufacturing centre with an Investment of Rs 300 to Rs 500 crore.

http://www.chennaionline.com/colnews/newsitem.asp?NEWSID=%7B0EDA8D59-F94A-4242-BE9B-B15C4684B95D%7D&CATEGORYNAME=CHN

peaceonearth

May 17th, 2008, 10:32 PM

NEW DELHI: The Press Institute of India (PII), a non-profit society to create and sustain high and responsible standards of journalism, is shifting its operations to Chennai after four decades of work here.

Functioning from rented places here with limited resources, the PII is now moving to its own place in Chennai in the premises of RIND (Research in Newspaper Development) in the Central Polytechnic Campus in Taramani, a PII statement said.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News_By_Industry/Media__Entertainment_/PII_shifting_operations_to_Chennai/articleshow/3046131.cms

Subra

May 17th, 2008, 11:07 PM

http://www.business-standard.com/common/news_article.php?autono=323306&leftnm=1&subLeft=0&chkFlg=

The company will soon start commercial production of tablets and capsules at the Rs 32-crore, export-oriented unit in Grandyon, Chennai. The facility is built according to global standards and is awaiting the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approval.

The Rs 40-crore company plans to position the new facility for contract manufacturing for multinational companies. At present, Bafna has a manufacturing facility in Madhavaram, Chennai, and markets over 120 products in the anti-infective, cardio-vascular, diabetes and pain management segments. The research and development division also has a pipeline of another 14 new products.
-----------------------------------------------
Where is Grandyon in Chennai ?

Subra

May 19th, 2008, 01:21 PM

duplicate

Rasnaboy

May 19th, 2008, 02:43 PM

peaceonearth

May 19th, 2008, 06:18 PM

http://www.merinews.com/catFull.jsp?articleID=134280

Apollo is also expected to set up a new tyre plant in Hungary with an investment of around Rs 13 billion and another in Chennai with the investment of Rs eight billion. The plant in Hungary will hold the capacity of making seven million radial tyres for the European Union by 2012. For the Chennai plant, the company is investing eight billion rupees over the next three years.

peaceonearth

May 19th, 2008, 06:23 PM

New Delhi (PTI): Rural Electrification Corporation (REC) on Monday said it has sanctioned a loan of Rs 3,796 crore to NTPC Tamil Nadu Power Company, a 50:50 joint venture of NTPC and Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB), for a thermal power project.

REC has funded this project single handedly as against the normal consortium route. It would be commissioned in the 11th plan and is likely to add 1,000 MW thermal generation capacity to the state of Tamil Nadu, a company release said.

The project would come up at Kuruvimedu village near Chennai. The first unit is expected to be commissioned in 2010-11. State-run BHEL would supply power equipments required for the project, the release said.

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/006200805191325.htm

greatchennai

May 20th, 2008, 02:27 PM

Holiday Inn returns to Chennai.

http://www.4hoteliers.com/4hots_nshw.php?mwi=4495

In India's third largest city the new-build 200-room/75-suite hotel is to open in Chennai's Estancia Integrated Township in 2011.

IHG (InterContinental Hotels Group) is bringing its award-winning globally recognised Holiday Inn brand back to Chennai, India's third largest city and where India's first Holiday Inn hotel was established 35 years ago, in 1973.

Holiday Inn Estancia Chennai, a brand new 200-room, 75-suite hotel, will be developed by leading India-based construction and engineering company L&T Arun Excello Commercial Projects Ltd and managed by IHG. The hotel will be part of the 82-acre Estancia Integrated Township, a mixed use development with a technology park earmarked as a special economic zone. Scheduled to open in 2011, the hotel is developed at an investment of US$35 million.

The Estancia Integrated Township is being jointly developed by L&T Urban Infrastructure Ltd and the Arun Excello Group of Companies. Features include a residential zone with 1,900 apartments, a 3,000,000 square feet technology park, a retail mall with multiplex and a school. The entire project is designed by RMJM, a leading US architectural firm. The township is located 35 kilometres south of Chennai's city centre, along the National Highway 45 with easy access to the international airport and suburban railway network.

Leisure travellers will also be able to enjoy Holiday Inn Estancia Chennai's proximity to Mahabalipuram, a UNESCO-listed 7th century port city famous for its ancient temples and sculptures.
....

greatchennai

May 20th, 2008, 02:27 PM

India’s first medical tech park in TN

N Ravikumar
CHENNAI, May 19: The first medical technology park in the country will be set up at Irungattukottai, near Chennai by Trivitron, one of India's medical technology companies, in collaboration with Aloka, a well known international company.
The park to be set up an investment of Rs 250 crore would be spread over an area of 23 acres was aimed to develop high quality, cost effective medical technology products suited to the needs of developing countries, Dr GSK Velu, managing director of Trivitron told reporters here.
The park would also enhance the accessibility and affordability of medical instruments to the rural mass, he said. It would first focus on domestic market and then on emerging markets with particular emphasis on South Asia, West Asia and African markets.
At present most of the medical instruments were imported as hospitals were hesitant to use products without a brand name. When all other related fields related to medical technology had grown in the country, it was time the country started manufacturing medical technology products, he said.
The park would be built on par with international manufacturing standards and the company was also exploring the possibility of converting the park into SEZ after acquiring another two acre land in the same location, Mr Velu said.
Trivitron would focus on manufacturing of medical equipment in the areas of critical care, cardiac care, imaging and routine laboratory diagnostics. For the initial phase, it would manufacture products like X-ray machines, ECG machines and stress test systems

http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=2&theme=&usrsess=1&id=204701

senthil2001msk

May 21st, 2008, 11:25 AM

Nissan is all set to make its foray in the small car segment in India. The Nissan, Renault, Bajaj tripartite alliance plans to launch the compact car from their Chennai facility. Called the “A” platform car, Nissan calls it a strategic matter as this involves addressing a certain price band, bringing value to customers along with a high level of affordability and delivering mobility to a large number of people. In this interview, Nissan EVP, Carlos Tavares, speaks about this latest compact car venture and his India-centric future plans.

NDTV : Now since you have stepped into the Indian market, you have got your alliance partners and your strategies for that in place. Also the plant in Chennai has been announced where work has already begun, so what’s now the strategy ahead?

Carlos Tavares : Our strategy in India was to step in with Indian partners and up to now we are very consistent. We have taken the time to select the right Indian partners and I believe it was a good investment for the efficiency of our corporation in the future. It is always good to spend a little more time in the beginning to make sure that everybody understands the same thing, everybody shares the same goal and business interests are aligned in the same direction so that the implementation phase is very smooth and efficient. Now our Chennai plant has been handed over for overseas operations. We have finalized the last details with our partners and very soon we will announce where we will built our specific manufacturing facilities to produce our HCVs in India. Thus we are converging very nicely with Renault Bajaj.

NDTV : Tell us the way in which the capacity is going to work in the Chennai plant. How is it going to be divided between Renault and Nissan? And also the capacity that you will use will that be both for export and domestic purposes?

Carlos Tavares : Yes we would like to take that opportunity because in India there is a strong potential in terms of supply. We believe we can perfectly achieve high levels of quality and cost efficiency which opens the door for export opportunities. The Chennai manufacturing site is based on three major legal entities. One of them is a 50-50 JV between Renault and Nissan. From the Nissan perspective we will primarily support the growth in India but we have enough capacity to export and also take the best out of our supply base.
NDTV : Since you and Renault will be in the same plant, though different lines, will there be some kind of product sharing with Renault?

Carlos Tavares : From the go, both companies share the manufacturing best practices and guidelines which gives us the possibility to use any of our cars in the line of any of the partners. So for us the capability to cross manufacturing products is already being implemented since the last four or five years. We decided to create a new platform called “A” platform for entry cars and the reason we did this because we learnt a lot of things regarding cost efficiency from Renault’s Logan success and we decided to implement them in the A platform. This platform will start in India from the Chennai base.

NDTV : What are other products you will be launching from Chennai’s Nissan stable? Can we expect some platform sharing agreement between you and Renault?

Carlos Tavares : Of course we will extend our line up in India to meet the Indian customer needs. We will start with the entry level cars from Chennai base because in terms of the investments we made, volumes are important.
NDTV : What is the time frame? When can we expect to see these things kick in and will there be the same product coming out from both the stables, branded separately, but on the same platform?

Carlos Tavares : Of course we are always in a situation when any platform from the alliance can be used by any partner. So we are open to any kind of platform sharing with Renault as long as it is beneficial for us. We will need somewhere around two to five years to ramp up in India and be significant player in the compact car segment in Indian market. Once we achieve that perhaps we will go a step further for enlargement of our line-up. We have already announced that may be by 2012 we will have a portfolio of at least 8 cars in India.

NDTV : So will that include only CBUs or all vehicles manufactured and rolled out of Chennai?

Carlos Tavares : Most of that will be CBUs but in terms of diversity they will be Indian made.

Mahindra was supposed to be a part of the manufacturing in Chennai but is not a part of it anymore. What went wrong? Also Suzuki, the car would be manufactured in India. Will that be for Indian markets or solely for Europe?

Carlos Tavares : This car is going to be used in Europe. The decision made by M&M was due to change in priorities and the fact that there was the opportunity to have a better manufacturing strategy compatible with the product strategy of M&M. So at one point of time it decided to shift its strategy and we respect that. Though from the Nissan’s perspective we regret this decision because we feel the quality of discussion was good.

NDTV : Bajaj and Renault had already started on discussions for the small car project and you entered later. What made you do so?

Carlos Tavares : Yes Renault started to discuss with Bajaj first but very quickly we were on board too. We considered low cost cars as a strategic matter as this involves addressing a certain price band, bringing value to customers with a high level of affordability and delivering mobility to a large number of people. So discussions were started on a three party basis very quickly and it has reached a certain level of maturity.

NDTV : Tell me about the branding. Will it be under the brand Renault, Bajaj or Nissan?

Carlos Tavares : All options are open. The discussions are still underway.

NDTV : And by when will we be able to see this car actually?

Carlos Tavares : We will make an announcement very soon.

Subra

May 21st, 2008, 11:38 AM

TechCity

May 22nd, 2008, 07:26 AM

source:Why Velachery scores as a real estate destination Realty check

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/22/images/2008052260060401.jpg
CHENNAI: Multi-storeyed developments, the hallmark of upcoming residential areas in the city, dot this locality close to the IT Corridor. Velachery, in the space of less than a decade, has become a hub of premium to mid-level residential development due to the influx of IT professionals and rapid improvement of infrastructure.

Builders moved into the area post-2000 in large numbers as they scented the potential of a locality well-connected with Old Mahabalipuram, since renamed as Rajiv Gandhi Salai, and home to several IT companies (IT Corridor).

The Velachery boom is part of a generalised increase in demand for housing in the city, they say.

The location scored initially as it offered builders plenty of land to purchase. Now, land has grown scarce.

“When we began our first project 8 or 9 years ago, we were among the first few builders. Even the roads were not good then. Now, every big retailer wants an outlet here,” said Gayithri Punjabi-Mirza, Director, KG Developers. The company has completed two residential projects, with one more ready for occupation and another scheduled for completion next year in Velachery. It has also completed a commercial project for a leading garment retailer.

Land Marvel has recently started the foundation for its residential project in the area and has received several bookings from IT professionals and non-resident Indians (NRIs). The latter often purchase housing as an investment that could also be used by family later, said M. Arivazhagan, Director, Land Marvel.

Rise in prices

While prices are stable currently, they are likely to rise with the increased development of IT commercial space in the area, he said. Prices of two- and three-bedroom flats listed for sale or resale in several classifieds ads range from Rs.35 lakh to Rs.70 lakh for luxury housing currently.

Good road connectivity and road-widths that permit multi-storeyed development are frequently cited by builders as other advantages of the location.

The rapid development on arterial roads, such as Velachery Bypass, in the area and the rise in the property prices has also resulted in an increase in construction activity in interior areas.

Though many areas, particularly those in western Velachery lack good roads, are prone to flooding during heavy rains and not connected by Metropolitan Transport Corporation buses, people continue to prefer them in view of the appreciation in the property rates.

House owners in Velachery are also in the past few years finding it lucrative to let out their homes on rent and move to other areas closer to the city centre. Residents report that this has become a trend. House-hunters in the location area also find that rentals are geared towards IT professionals.

TechCity

May 22nd, 2008, 12:16 PM

source:http://newstodaynet.com/newsindex.php?section=9&id=7677

Venture capitalist Milestone Capital Advisors would invest up to Rs 1,200 crore in Tamilnadu to build green housing units that are affordable too.
Set up by Ved Prakash Arya, the objective of Milestone Capital was to facilitate investment in various areas of the Indian economy. Chennai and other cities like Coimbatore and Madurai in Tamilnadu offered big opportunity for real estate investment in the country.

This was borne out by the fact in a recent survey of property markets by consulting firm Ernst & Young in which Tier-II cities like Madurai and Coimbatore featured among the top 50 destinations in the country. ‘Chennai itself was ranked as third best market ahead of cities like Bangalore and Hyderabad,’ said Prakash Arya, managing director of Milestone Capital Advisors.

He pointed out in the last few years Chennai has become one of the sought after destinations by foreign investors, looking to make substantial presence in India.
When compared to other metros like Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore, Chennai still offered the lowest cost of living.

Chennai property markets have shown remarkable growth in recent years, with property prices rising two fold in a three-year period. Demand for office space remained strong and it was estimated that the demand for office space would be in the region of 25 million sq ft for the next two to three years ‘The trend in real estate indicates the economic prospects of Chennai remain excellent. We believe this will also fuel a demand of residential space to the tune of 15-20 million sq ft over the next two to three years,’ he said.

He pointed out that Chennai has become a favoured destination of many global players in property development who were coming up with large projects in the city which further boost industrial growth. These include not only investors and developers from the US, Europe and Far East, but even from countries like Israel.

All these underscored the potential of the real estate market in the city. ‘However the explosive growth is also likely to raise property prices further. As more developers concentrate on building luxury apartments to cater to the well off, there is likely to be a scarcity of affordable housing in the city. It is this under-served market that our investments will target,’ he said.

Talking about green housing, Prakash Arya said Chennai was the first city in the country to make rain water harvesting (RWH) compulsory for new residential projects.
‘While eco-friendly housing today has become the buzzword, we believe the real wave of green housing will start from Chennai. That is why we have actively sought out such projects for our investments.’

Milestone has so far raised over Rs 3,000 crore from the domestic and offshore markets.
The company has one of the highest deployment ratio in the sector having so far signed investment deals of over 60 per cent of the fund raised. Milestone was in the process of raising Rs 1,000 crore for its domestic fund called Milestone Domestic Scheme II.
The company provides a wide choice of real estate investment products to suit individual needs of clients. Milestone leveraged its background of its constituents to invest in India.
Many IT buildings have come up which had incorporated green features in their structures like Olympia Tech and CII building at Velacherry

kvijayasundaram

May 23rd, 2008, 02:06 AM

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/05/23/stories/2008052351190300.htm

The Chennai-based GKS Construction Aids Pvt Ltd (GCAPL) is setting up a project to provide readymade steel for the construction industry.

The company is setting up rebar cut and bend facility in the city’s Ambattur industrial estate to make readymade steel. It will help reduce the lead time for construction projects, especially large projects. The construction industry can now have steel rods cut to size, fabricated according to specification and delivered on time basis for concreting.

The company is in talks with large construction conglomerates like ETA, Allied Housing and DLF to supply readymade steel. GCAPL is into manufacturing steel centering, shuttering and scaffolding equipment.

The Managing Director of GCAPL, Mr A.S. Hariprasad, told Business Line that the Rs 25-crore plant can process about 3,000 tonnes of steel — of 8 mm to 40 mm diameter — a month. With the design and dimensions of the concreting portion from the customers, the CNC machines at GCAPL compute, cut and fabricate steel rods. It will help large construction companies to reduce inventory, optimise space, time and avoid overlap of steel rods eventually optimising volume and weight of concrete and steel scientifically in buildings. The plant will be up and running next month, he said.

senthil2001msk

May 23rd, 2008, 04:33 AM

Ennore is the first project to apply the new eligibility criteria after the rules were finalized in January by the Planning Commission

Bangalore: Unlikely partnerships have emerged in the bidding process for a Rs1,300 crore container terminal facility at the Ennore Port in Tamil Nadu, with companies determined to stay in the race till the final lap. As of Tuesday, the last date for submission of initial bids, 22 entities have applied for building the facility.Ennore Port Ltd, owned by the Union government, has said only six entities will be pre-qualified to submit financial bids for the facility with an annual capacity for 1.5 million 20-foot equivalent units, the standard size of a container. This is because of a government policy on bidding criteria for cargo terminals at major ports. Ennore is the first project to apply the new eligibility criteria after the rules were finalized in January by the Planning Commission, which acts as the secretariat to the Prime Minister’s committee on infrastructure.
“Even after qualifying on financial, technical and experience criteria on their own for these projects, many firms face the threat of elimination because of the six-bidder-per-project rule,” said Kshitiz Bhasker, head of business development at Gammon Infrastructure Projects Ltd, which has bid for the project along with Spanish logistics and port operator Dragados SPL and Australia’s biggest construction firm Leighton Holdings Ltd. “As a result, rival firms and like-minded entities are teaming up to strengthen their chances of pre-qualification and be in the reckoning.”
International Container Terminal Services Inc. submitted its bid independently, while DP World bid along with IDFC Projects Ltd; PSA International Pte Ltd with ABG Infralogistics Ltd; Sical Logistics Ltd with Macquarie Group Ltd; NYK Line with Hyundai Merchant Marine Co. Ltd; Mundra Port and SEZ Ltd with Neptune Orient Lines Ltd; and GVK Power and Infrastructure Ltd with Mitsui and Co Ltd.
Similarly, Vedanta Resources Plc. has submitted its bid along with Eurogate GmbH and Co.; IL&FS Ltd with Punj Lloyd Ltd and Pembinaan Redzai Sdn Bhd; Larsen and Toubro Ltd with John Keells Holdings Plc.; Lanco Infratech Ltd with JSW Infrastructure and Logistics Ltd; while Terminal Investment Ltd has joined hands with Samsung Heavy Industries Co. Ltd, Shipping Corp. of India Ltd, Concor Ltd, CWC Ltd and Hind Terminals Pvt. Ltd; Vadinar Oil Terminal Ltd and Essar Shipping have bid together with Ports and Logistics Ltd and Wan Hai Lines Ltd.
Saqr Port Authority submitted its bid with RAK; IMC Ltd with ITD Cementation India Ltd and Srei Infrastructure Finance Ltd; GS Engineering and Construction Co. Ltd with Indiabulls Financial Services Ltd; and Group Maritime TCB with GE Maritime and Eredene Capital Plc.
Applicants will now be ranked on the basis of their experience scores in various fields, after which they will be short-listed for submission of price bids. The bidder willing to share the highest proportion of his annual operating gross revenues with the government port will get the right to run the new terminal.

satsukhoi

May 23rd, 2008, 06:15 AM

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi: Parliament’s standing committee on transport and tourism has held the Planning Commission responsible for the delay in upgradation of the Kolkata and Chennai airports, and introducing backroom privatisation. The civil aviation ministry was asked to explain why it allowed the delay to continue.
The parliamentary panel, headed by CPM’s Sitaram Yechury, blamed the Planning Commission for rejecting an agreement prepared by Airports Authority of India, according to which modernisation of Delhi airport would have been done in 48 months.
It called officials of the plan panel, aviation ministry and AAI on Thursday to discuss modernisation of Kolkata, Chennai and 25 non-metro airports.
It said the mess in Delhi airport was because the private company had started exploiting the airport commercially without providing facilities for passengers.

Airport development hangs fire

New Delhi: The parliamentary panel, headed by CPM’s Sitaram Yechury, expressed its displeasure over the delay in the modernisation of Chennai and Kolkata airports.
Sources said the Planning Commission faced the brunt of the parliamentary panel’s displeasure. A member said the committee on infrastructure, headed by the Prime Minister, had decided more than two years ago that the Kolkata and Chennai airports would be modernised by the AAI.
Airside modernisation was to be done by the AAI while the cityside was to be modernised through PPP route. The commission brought terminal modernisation to the PPP mode. It has prepared a concession agreement for Kolkata airport, where not only the cityside but even the terminal building, would be leased out to the private sector for 30 years.” TNN

TechCity

May 26th, 2008, 08:53 AM

http://www.hindu.com/rp/2008/03/16/stories/2008031650170400.htm
Big malls are the trend today. Retailers focus on attracting consumers by housing Multiplexes in these malls. Inox at Chennai City Centre has proved that movie watching can be taken to a whole new level. This also adds credit to shopping and other recreation activities. The consumer is promised with the best comfort in the theatre and quality snacks to munch during movie time. Similarly, there is an assortment of foodstuff to choose from. Thanks to a choice of coffee shops and restaurants. In addition to theatres and eat-outs, people can shop extravagantly at large malls which house an array of national and international brands in a range of products from cosmetics to jewellery and coolers to clothing.

In Chennai, an additional retail space of 81 lakh square feet spread over 20 malls has been slated for inauguration in the next three years as against the existing three malls spread across 8 lakh square feet. Retailers are targeting it on the growing cosmopolitan population of our city. International brands such as Body Shop will set foot in Chennai in the near future.

Realty majors such as Prestige Group, Shriram Properties and DLF are in the forefront of mall development in the city. Prestige has drawn up plans for a second Forum mall in Chennai’s artery, Mount Road, while completing the first Rs.350-crore Forum mall at Vadapalani in collaboration with the Vijaya Group. Sources say that it will be spread over 17 lakh square feet, featuring a seven-screen multiplex, over 100 shops, two department stores and a 1,40,000 square feet hypermarket. The mall is expected to operate in the first quarter of 2010.

There are many other projects in the pipeline. ‘Ampa Centre One’ will be giving Chennai a fully international shopping experience. It will house 6.5 lakh sq. ft. of food court, hyper market (by Spencer), 20-room hotel, fine-dining restaurants and the PVR Cinemas multiplex. It is expected that McDonald would open a 5,000 square feet outlet. Allied Housing & Development is planning a seven lakh square feet mall at Sirusseri on the Old Mahabalipuram Road, Chennai’s IT corridor.

The Ozone Group’s 14 lakh square feet ‘Ozone Mall’ is coming up at its integrated township Metro Zone in Anna Nagar. ‘River Side’, a jumbo mall at Karapakkam near Chennai, when completed in the fourth quarter of 2008, would take up 11 lakh square feet of built-up space, including a mammoth parking area, according to industry sources. The mall is being set up at a cost of Rs 500 crore.

Looks like malls are set to rock the retail stage and modernise the shopping experience of every Chennaite!

I need some clarifications
In Chennai, an additional retail space of 81 lakh square feet spread over 20 malls has been slated for inauguration in the next three years as against the existing three malls spread across 8 lakh square feet.
Which is three existing malls?
1.Spenzer
2.City Center
3.???

Which is that 20 malls?whether it is under construction?

nsantha2

May 26th, 2008, 04:06 PM

The 3rd mall is Abirami Mega Mall in Purasawaakam.

Of the upcoming ones, I can only name a few off the top of my head - Chennai Central (on Nungambakkam High Road, by the Income Tax Collectorate), MARG Riverside (OMR), Coromandel (OMR), DLF (no idea where), Prestige Group's (Vadapalani & Mount Road), some of which are already mentioned in the quoted article.

Regarding the AMPA mall (Nelson Manickam Road), the project appears to be in limbo. I didn't see any construction going on when I was in Chennai in December. Reasons for this range from being unstable since it's on the banks of the river to lack of money (to complete construction).

senthil2001msk

May 27th, 2008, 03:15 AM

HYDERABAD: Taj GVK Hotels & Resorts has lined up investments worth over Rs 500 crore in its existing and new properties in south India over the next two-three years.

It is set to open the 200-room Taj Mount Road in Chennai next month while work on a new five-star property in the heart of Hyderabad’s business district Begumpet is slated to open in the end of 2009.

This apart, the company is also setting up 45 service apartments on a 2.5 acre property right next to the Taj Krishna at a cost of Rs 150 crore. The service apartment will also house a spa and club house, Veer Vijay Singh, director operations, Taj GVK, said.
The hotel chain, which currently operates three properties in the city and one in Chandigarh, also proposes to add more rooms to the Taj Deccan, totaling 123 over the next three years, at a cost of Rs 150 crore, he added.

More significantly, the group which posted revenues of Rs 260 crore as of March 31, 2008, a 6% increase over the previous year, has also zeroed in on Bangalore, Kodaikanal, Jaipur and Amritsar to set up hotels over the next few years.

“We are at various stages of finalising properties in these places for our next foray,” Singh said. He, however, added that discussions are still in the initial stages and could take some time.

senthil2001msk

May 27th, 2008, 03:16 AM

Flue-gas project will earn some carbon credits too

MUMBAI: Diversification gambits by real estate companies, which are facing various headwinds currently, continue.

Omaxe Ltd, the New Delhi-based developer, is entering into power generation by forming a joint venture with Isolux, a Spanish firm.

It will set up a 150 mw unit at Ennore near Chennai.

Vipin Agarwal, executive director, Omaxe, told DNA Money, “We are contemplating the project now. It will be a joint venture.” But he did not confirm the name of the partner.

Omaxe had earlier bid for two government power projects but didn’t win them.

The company is expected to hold 51% stake in the joint venture, with Isolux holding the rest.

By following environment-friendly guidelines, Omaxe intends to gain some carbon credits since the feedstock for the plant will be flue gas.

Flue gas is that which exits into the atmosphere through a flue or an exhaust equipment.

http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1166706

chennaimetroblogs

May 27th, 2008, 10:43 PM

http://www.blonnet.com/iw/2008/05/25/stories/2008052550841700.htm

The Tamil Nadu Government has to streamline building approval processes in Chennai and the rest of the State to fully realise the investment potential in the real-estate sector. The State has earned an unenviable reputation for delays in sanctioning building plan approvals and clearances — a clearance for a multi-storeyed building could take 18- 24 months, that is almost as long as it takes to construct the building.

Talk to anybody in the construction industry, the complaint is the same: Delay in approvals within the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA) jurisdiction in Chennai Metropolitan Area, and that of the Directorate of Town and Country Planning (DTCP) which is responsible for clearances elsewhere. Just the formalities involved in getting land use conversion — from agriculture to non-agriculture — alone could take nearly a year. Other States such as Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh or Maharashtra have a system for fast-track clearances of projects. Approvals are obtained in about 4-6 months, including land usage conversion.

Need to speed up

The Tamil Nadu Government has acknowledged the need for expediting the clearance procedures and has started taking steps to speed up approvals for IT and industrial buildings.

At a high-level meeting last February, called by the Chief Secretary, Mr L. K. Tripathy, the officials connected with various agencies involved in plan approvals, including the CMDA, DTCP, Chennai Corporation, Municipal Administration, Fire Department, Traffic and industry promotion agencies, had expressed an intention to put in place a system to accord clearances within 60 days for IT and industrial buildings. But the proposal continues to be on paper and is yet to take off.

At the meeting, the Electronics Corporation of Tamil Nadu (Elcot) was identified as the nodal agency that would act as a single window facilitation agency to accept the applications from IT building developers and SEZ developers and coordinate the process of obtaining clearances from various agencies. The Guidance Bureau, the agency under the Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation, created to attract investments into the State, would play a similar role to get approvals for industrial buildings.

The plan was to institutionalise this structure with an appropriate legislation, a draft of which was to have been prepared during the Budget session of the Assembly. The legislation was to provide for a 60-day time limit for building plan approval, 30 days for issue of final building plan clearance by the local bodies and the formation of a single window facilitation authority. However,
nearly three months after the proposal there does not appear to be much progress in this direction.

Shortage of space

The State Government has estimated that over 20 million sq.ft. of built-up space for the IT industry is needed within the SEZs over the next 18 months. If building approvals are not given on time, IT investments could migrate to other States where such space is available.

There is also an acute shortage of office and retail space which is driving up the costs. Industry estimates peg the demand for office space in Chennai at about 7-8 million sq.ft. and for retail space about 2 million sq.ft. this year. Developments have to be speeded up to meet the demand.

chennaimetroblogs

May 27th, 2008, 10:45 PM

http://www.blonnet.com/2008/05/26/stories/2008052651081500.htm

Clarification sought on whether non-engg firms can develop space here

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The move has caught developers by surprise because Sidco has allowed IT projects on a massive scale in both the estates.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

R. Balaji

Chennai, May 25 Developers planning office and hospitality projects in the industrial estates in Chennai’s suburbs have been hit with the Tamil Nadu Small Industries Development Corporation (Sidco) not approving the projects pending a policy decision from the State Government, according to sources in the know.

Sidco, a State Government enterprise, has sought a clarification from the Government on whether non-engineering companies can be allowed to develop space in the engineering industrial estates in Guindy and Ambattur.

The move has caught developers by surprise because Sidco is having second thoughts after allowing IT projects on a massive scale in both the estates. About 3 million sq ft of IT space has come up in Guindy on the southern outskirts and nearly 6 million sq ft in Ambattur to the west. Industry estimates that there is potential at both the industrial estates to at least double the IT space.

Sidco manages five industrial estates in and around Chennai, and Guindy and Ambattur industrial estates have emerged prime destinations for IT companies and office-space developers. The hospitality industry has also started looking at space here. Till a decade ago these were distant industrial suburbs, which have now been engulfed by the growth of the city and have become prime areas of investment. An acre of land in Guindy now costs over Rs 1 crore and in Ambattur about Rs 75 lakhs.

Waiting for approval

According to developers, at least 7-10 proposals for IT space development and hospitality projects, including an IT building at an advanced stage of completion, are stuck, with Sidco declining to give no-objection certificates. Though the engineering companies that own the land in the industrial estate are free to sell the land or develop it as a joint venture, they need to inform Sidco of the proposal.

On the reasons for Sidco’s move, sources in the know say a section of the manufacturers feel constrained by the presence of IT companies. Skilled and semi-skilled workers with industrial units find IT companies better pay masters
and change jobs. For instance, a welder who is paid about Rs 6,000-7,000 in an industrial unit prefers to take up the job of an office assistant because the pay is a few thousand rupees more and they get to work in air-conditioned comfort.

‘not against IT’

However, according to the representatives of industrial associations, they are not against the IT companies. There are nearly 500 industrial units in Guindy and about 800 in Ambattur. The developers give the units a chance to encash on the growing land value and shift to other locations further from the city like the Sidco’s industrial estates at Thirumudivakkam, Thirumazhisai and Thirumullaivoyal to the west of the city. The IT space has come up in places sold off by engineering units.

senthil2001msk

May 28th, 2008, 10:24 AM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/26/images/2008052657300101.jpg

long-awaited: Work on desalination plant at Kattupalli has been delayed owing to reasons such as unseasonal rain. —

CHENNAI: The commissioning of the 100-million litres a day (mld) desalination plant at Kattupalli near suburban Minjur is likely to be delayed by four months. It was scheduled to be commissioned in August this year.

Attributing the delay to unseasonal rain in March, Chennai Metrowater officials said about 70 per cent of the works had been completed. Dredging operation also could not be carried out due to rough sea. Dredging would facilitate laying of a separate pipeline to draw seawater from 10-metre-depth below sea level and discharge waste water, a Metrowater official said.

Though about 15 mld of water was to be supplied on completion of the first phase of the project, envisaged to be completed in May, the delay had pushed the project deadline to December, he said.

Chennai Water Desalination Limited, a special purpose vehicle formed by IVRCL Infrastructures and Projects Limited and its technical partner Befesa Construccion y Tecnologia Ambiental, Spain, started implementing the project on a DBOOT (design, build, own, operate and transfer) basis last year.

The official said work for constructing units such as sand filters and cartridge filters, used to remove minute particles as part of the preliminary treatment, was under way. The process to erect five reverse osmosis units, an important component in desalinating seawater, was also in progress. Each of the unit that had a capacity to treat 20 mld of seawater would be commissioned one after another during December, the official said.

About Rs.118 crore was expected to be spent on purchase of water from the Minjur plant.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/26/stories/2008052657300100.htm

senthil2001msk

May 28th, 2008, 10:26 AM

Joint venture projects will become operational soon

Mumbai, May 27Increasing pressure on vehicle manufacturers in terms of emission control, fuel economy and input cost turns out an opportunity for plastic component makers. The European trend of plastic replacing metal in some of the vehicle parts is catching up in India as international joint ventures to make plastic fuel tanks and clutch systems, such as Yapp-Zoom Automotive Systems and FTE Setco, will become operational in the near future. Also, German-based BASF is setting up its engineering plastic plant in India.

FTE Setco Automotive, an Indo-German joint venture, will come out with plastic hydraulic clutch actuations systems from its Baroda plant in December this year. According to manufacturers, in their product, plastic replaces cast iron and makes the vehicle lighter by 2 kg. Clutch maker Setco’s existing clients — Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, Eicher Motors and AMW — would source clutch actuation systems from the newly formed joint venture.

Germany-based FTE’s global clients, including Audi, Ford, Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, GM, Hyundai, Volvo, Skoda and Suzuki, would also source actuation systems from the joint venture for their future platforms.

OEMs excited

“The Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) are excited about the new product and see the benefit it has. Not only does it replace the current system in terms of weight but also increases the life of the system and removes inefficiencies. The OEMs understand this benefit and are working with us on various future platforms,” said Mr Udit Sheth, CEO, FTE Setco Automotive.

Yapp-Zoom Automotive System Pvt Ltd, a collaborative venture between Chinese fuel tank makers Yapp and Mumbai-based Zoom Developers, will start production of plastic fuel tanks in September 2009. The 2.5-lakh capacity plant is being set up in Chennai at the Ford’s supplier park. In Europe, US and China, about 70-90 per cent vehicles use plastic fuel tanks, the manufacturers claim.

“Though there is no major cost advantage, design flexibility, emission reduction and safety attract OEMs,” said Mr Anilkumar Menon, Vice-President, Zoom Automobile Ancillaries. Other than Ford, the company is in talks with Mahindra & Mahindra, GM and Volkswagen.

Positive on revenue

Buoyed by the huge interest shown by OEMs, the plastic component makers have high hopes of return. Setco hopes that the Rs 60-crore joint venture will fetch the company revenue of Rs 200 crore in five years while Zoom expects its Rs 56-crore venture to break even in the second year.

“The increased use of plastic for the weight reduction is a global trend. If 10 per cent weight is reduced, 25 kg of CO2 emission will be reduced in the lifetime of a car,” said Herman Althoff, BASF’s Group Vice-President, Asia Pacific. The company, which is setting up its engineering plastic unit in Thane, is associated with Tata Motor’s Nano project.

Another German chemical company Lanxess, with expertise in plastic/metal composite technology with polyamide used for making car roofs and brake pedals, also has greater plans for India.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/05/28/stories/2008052850280300.htm

senthil2001msk

May 28th, 2008, 12:59 PM

MUMBAI, May 28 (Reuters) - Real estate firm SSI Ltd (SSI.BO: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Wednesday a consortium with Unitech (UNTE.BO: Quote, Profile, Research) and Arihant Foundations (ARFL.BO: Quote, Profile, Research) will jointly develop an integrated township at a 70-acre property in Chennai.
The township project is expected to yield built-up space of 7.6 million sq ft for residential, commercial and retail units.

The project is expected to generate revenue of 20 billion rupees over seven years for SSI, it said in a release.

http://in.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idINBMB00184420080528

chennaimetroblogs

May 29th, 2008, 02:33 AM

http://www.hindu.com/2008/05/29/stories/2008052961471200.htm

Renault-Nissan and its vendors will be housed on 890 acres at Oragadam

Trial production will begin by 2009

and commercial production by 2010

CHENNAI: Having allotted 640 acres to the Renault-Nissan joint venture for making 4 lakh passenger cars a year at Oragadam, the State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu (SIPCOT) proposes to allot 250 acres in two places to its suppliers.

In all, Renault-Nissan and its vendors, numbering 100, will be housed on 890 acres in and around Oragadam.

By far, this is the largest land allotment for an automobile major by the government agency.

Hyundai Motors was allotted 526 acres at Sriperumbudur.
50 acres allotted

A five-member committee, headed by SIPCOT chairman and managing director N. Govindan, met on Monday and distributed 50 acres in the suppliers park to seven essential suppliers.

“We have already allotted 640 acres to Renault-Nissan. They would like to have their suppliers close to their manufacturing facility so that their delivery schedules are not affected. In the first phase, the suppliers park will be located on 161 acres at Oragadam, and the second phase will come up on 90 acres at Pillaipakkam,” Mr. Govindan told The Hindu.

Renault-Nissan officials told SIPCOT officials that the trial production would begin by 2009 and commercial production by 2010. The joint venture will invest Rs. 4,000 crore, and the vendors will invest another Rs.1,000 crore.

senthil2001msk

May 29th, 2008, 04:38 AM

Mahindra Lifespace now entering residential space

Arun Nanda, President & ED, M&M informed CNBC-TV18 that Mahindra Lifespace is now going into the residential phase. One will see a much higher level of profitability, he estimated. "The business of growing integrated township does not end there. We are acquiring lands at different locations. I can’t give you the exact name of the locations because we are still in the process of consolidating the land. But we have definitive plans, we have definitive agreements and this process is going on," he said.

Excerpts from CNBC-TV18’s exclusive interview with Arun Nanda:

Q: In your previous meets you had spoken about four of your projects, which are nearing a finalization. Can you reveal something more about the projects on the annual?

Nanda: You have to look at Mahindra Lifespace as its business model. The beauty of Mahindra Lifespace is that the cream of the profits comes from a time when you go from creation of job to creation of social infrastructure. In Chennai we have sold all the industrial land we have promises for about a 1,00,000 jobs directly, which leads to 1,50,000. We are now going into the residential phase. So you will see a much higher level of profitability.

Jaipur will start becoming operational in June 2008 with Deutsche Bank and Infosys operating. It will then move into those social infrastructure phase.

I had also said that the business of growing integrated township does not end there. We are acquiring lands at different locations. I can’t give you the exact name of the locations because we are still in the process of consolidating the land. But we have definitive plans, we have definitive agreements and this process is going on.

Q: We understand that you had four projects each over 100 acres under development?

A: They are larger than 100 acres, there are two in Tamil Nadu and two in Maharashtra is all I can tell you at this stage. But you also have to remember that we just don’t do integrated townships; we have 2.7 million square feet under construction and 4.7 million square feet, where we have got the approvals and we are getting into construction this year, except for Nasik which might spill into the next year, which is small at about a few hundred thousand square feet.

Q: Let me concentrate on Chennai, the market buzz is that between the first sales that you did, the anchor sales and the last sales that you have done, the price has jumped up substantially, the numbers go as high as 25 times, am I right?

A: I would split it into two parts; I would say that in the industrial side, they probably go upward of 10-times. But if you get into deals which we have done for hospital or we are doing for the valuations for some of the other commercial spaces, then the number of 25 looks right. But I would like to make one point clear to the investors that in this business, when you do a large project, the anchor doesn’t pay you the top dollar. In fact we have to do in case of Chennai, we started the anchor at below cost, but it is still a significant increase. Even in Jaipur, from where we started, we are already at three-times where we started. But just to complete the story, in the industrial side, you sell in acres but when you become residential, you actually move into square feet. So the realization goes beyond 25-times.

Q: Could you give us some idea on the valuations of the Sullivan County project, because there were some mind boggling valuations that were doing the rounds in market circles?

A: Sullivan County was a small test-marketing project of 25 acres which was sold. If you are talking of the extended residential, let me tell you what we have - about 225 acres of residential and 50 acres of commercial in hand and we are not selling commercial now because we believe if after the residential we sell commercial, we will get better rates.

225 acres translates to around 15 million square feet; this land was acquired by us sometime ago. So the land cost is fairly low and it is not even in three digits per square feet. Selling prices in that region are about Rs 3,000 and our construction costs would not have any taxes because it is in the SEZ. So we should save about Rs 200. I think there is a huge valuation sitting there but in addition to that, we have acquired or are in the process of closing documentation for another 300 acres - so that part of the business is looking good and I don’t think the market correctly factored the valuation of that even today in spite of the stock having gone up by 50%.

Q: Would you look for a private equity player or someone to get correct valuations, something on the annual?

A: It is not ruled out but there is nothing on the card. We did do a strategic 50-acre development with the Ayala Group because Ayala's built Makati City, which is the financial capital of Philippines. We are looking for somebody who would bring in strategy more on the project management because while everybody is talking of large developments in India, people haven’t done that level of development. So private equity is not ruled out but as late you go to private equity, the better valuation you get. But there is nothing on the cards at this moment of time.

http://indiaearnings.moneycontrol.com/sub_india/compnews.php?autono=340104