Tender issued for consultants

Kochi: The National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC) has issued a tender for consultancy services to develop 17.9 acres of land in Marine Drive. In Sept last year, the NBCC inked a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Kerala State Housing Board (KSHB) for a housing project valued at Rs 2,280 crore in Marine Drive.
The project, set to come up on the land owned by KSHB near Goshree Junction, has been in the pipeline for over a decade.Initially conceptualized as a public-private partnership (PPP), it faced delays until now.
The land owned by KSHB near Goshree Bridge is a prime property in the city. The plan to set up a world-class convention centre under the project, then estimated at Rs 3,000 crore, took shape in 2019. However, the pandemic disrupted these plans, leading to a revision of the project while retaining key components like a shopping complex and convention centre.
According to the tender document, two adjacent land parcels spread over 3.16 acres and 14.74 acres would be used for mixed-use development comprising commercial and residential spaces.
Revenue minister K Rajan recently said the upcoming building complex, which is near Mangalavanam, would be developed as one of the country’s major exhibition centres. “About 40 lakh sq ft of the housing complex would be dedicated to housing and 3 lakh sq ft for commercial purposes,” he said.