Devanahalli will remain a village only in name. Very soon, it will match the capital city in development.

V Madhu, principal secretary, infrastructure development department, on Friday, said that the airport area will be developed into a massive sub-city to Bangalore.

The government is planning to build a 2,000-acre special economic zone (SEZ) around the Bengaluru International Airport.

Devanahalli will also sport a business park in a bid to convert it into a commercial hub, he added.

"The park project will be given to a potential developer on a 30-year lease. This will provide employment opportunities to lakhs of people, especially locals," said Madhu.

He added, "A business park spanning across 309 acres and built at a cost of Rs 9,500 crore will house hotels, convention centres and a golf course. All development projects will be executed through public-private partnership (PPP) as the state cannot fund them all."
The government had planned to call for tenders for the park project six months ago, but had to stall it due to the economic slowdown. It now plans to call for tenders in July.

At present, the state spends Rs16,000 crore annually on infrastructure projects.

Madhu said that 224 PPP projects have been planned at a cost of Rs 1.38 lakh crore for the state, of which 20% are in various stages of land procurement. Feasibility reports are being prepared for the rest.

The Rs3,600-crore High Speed Rail Link project to the airport is also picking pace. "At least 27 firms have shown interest and tenders will be shortlisted after August," said Madhu.

Source: DNA