The Times of India  03.09.2010

MOHALI: Mohali will have Information and Knowledge City on 1,500 acre land adjoining Aerocity. As per a decision taken by the state government on Wednesday, of the total land to be acquired for the project, 40% will be used for the development of IT industry, 35% for residential purpose and remaining 25% for commercial activity.

In a meeting chaired by Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, in principle approval was given to the project and land for the new venture will be acquired in four sectors adjoining Aerocity. Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA) has been entrusted with the job of developing the new project.

The provision of 35% land for residential purpose will give a chance to apply for plots to those who earlier could not apply for 3,800 plots of Aerocity.

Sources said land in sectors 82-A, 100, 101-A and 66-B would be acquired. The approval has come over two months after the chief minister gave his nod to GMADA to set up an industrial mega park over an area of about 1,500 to 2,000

acre on June 22.

Officials present in the meeting said the area where acquisition would take place for the new project was already earmarked as industrial sector in the master plan of Mohali.

?In the new project, a decision has been taken to develop super mega projects along with residential and commercial institutions,? they added. The financial module of the project will be based on the pattern of Aerocity project and for land acquisition, GMADA can obtain loans from banks. But most of the land will be acquired under land pooling scheme and the option of cash compensation too will be kept open.

Secretary, housing and urban development, SS Sandhu said the government has given in principle approval to the project, now GMADA would start the process of acquiring land. ?Land will be acquired in the next eight to nine months and project will be floated within a year. We will acquire four sectors to develop the new project,? he added.

For the proposed information and knowledge city, GMADA is going for one of the biggest acquisitions in recent times. Earlier, around 800 acre was acquired for the Aerocity project, where facilities like hotels and convention hall, exhibition and exposition halls, aviation academy, offices for aircraft companies and aircraft catering and kitchens are coming up, besides residential and commercial structures.