GIFT City unveils 3-pronged strategy to cultivate “social life”

Source: The Hindu Businessline

The strategy includes permissions to build an additional 5,000-odd residential units, building a food park, developing a central garden, and a large entertainment-cum-retail zone on the campus

In order to infuse “social life” in GIFT City, the Gujarat government on Saturday unveiled a three-pronged strategy which included permissions to build an additional 5,000-odd residential units on the campus. The strategy includes building a food park, developing a central garden and a large entertainment-cum-retail zone on the campus at Gandhinagar. “Keeping the additional requirement of residential units in GIFT City, we have recently approved construction of additional homes here,” said Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel while addressing the “Infinity Forum 2.0” event at GIFT City.

In the first phase, 4,400-odd residential units are being built by 10 real estate developers in GIFT City and the new permission to build additional homes could take the total count of homes to nearly 10,000 units. Currently, only one residential project with 300-odd residential units has been occupied by employees and their families working in GIFT City. The other residential projects, that are in various specifications — 1 bedroom, 2 bedroom and 3 bedroom — are under construction. Officials said GIFT City now plans to construct more studio apartments which will be fully furnished and ready-to-move-in kind of homes. 

Phase-2

“We have approved the development of a 4.5-kilometer-long riverfront on each side of Sabarmati river (passing on the Western flank). We will complete it as fast as possible,” Patel said. Under the Phase-2 development of GIFT City, 3,300 acres of additional land surrounding the project will be developed. “The development plan is being readied and it will be made public before the Vibrant Gujarat Summit 2024 (to be held on January 10-12, 2024). Under this development plan, new town planning schemes will be launched and it will help build a new township,” the chief minister added.

“I also want to tell you that by July 2024, the GIFT City will be connected by metro rail. Recently we reviewed the work of this project and looking at the progress, we can say confidently that the project will be completed on time.” Patel said the metro rail connectivity to GIFT City will be a boon for employees of GIFT City travelling from Ahmedabad and Gandhinagar.

Social life lacking

Speaking on the occasion, Hasmukh Adhia, Chairman, Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT-City) Company Ltd said, “When we consulted some of the players who are already in GIFT City, the feedback we got was about the social life missing in GIFT City. We are well aware of that. We are going to do three things: one is immediate, second is medium-term and third is long-term.”

Adhia said as an immediate measure to infuse social life in GIFT City, a food court with 20 food outlets is being built and will be thrown open before December 15. “Secondly, we are developing a central park which will encompass the GIFT City Club and areas around it. Very soon we will be issuing tenders for this. As per the long-term vision, we will be creating an entertainment-cum-retail park on 20 acres in GIFT City. Already some players have expressed interest in investing ₹2,000 crore. It will take about 2-3 years. We desire to bring a London Eye kind of attraction here so that we can call it a GIFT Eye,” he added.