Thaindian News

Bangalore, Feb 3 (IANS) The Karnataka government is setting up a dedicated Aerospace Park near the Bangalore international airport at Devanahalli on the city’s outskirts to attract global majors and small and medium enterprises (SMEs), an official said Thursday.”Of the proposed 1,000-acre Aerospace Park, about 800 acres of land has been acquired by the state government to facilitate global aerospace majors and several SMEs set up manufacturing and ancillary units for domestic and export markets,” state’s Industrial Development Commissioner Raj Kumar Khatri told reporters here.

The state government will earmark about 250 acres in the park to create a special economic zone (SEZ) with incentives and facilities offered by the central government for 100 percent dedicated export units.

“Being the country’s aerospace hub, we are showcasing Bangalore as an ideal destination for investing in this sunrise sector. The presence of various state-run defence research and development organisations, scientific and educational institutions and defence behemoths such as Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) provides an ecosystem to promote the aerospace industry in a big way,” Khatri said.

As India’s tech hub with a huge talent pool, Bangalore already boasts of being home to global aerospace majors such as Boeing, Airbus, Snecma, Rolls-Royce, Honeywell and BAE Systems.

Coinciding with the eighth Aero India 2011 trade fair in the city from Feb 9-13, the state government has scheduled a series of meetings with global firms and business delegations to discuss investments in wholly-owned subsidiaries, joint ventures and expansion of their existing operations in the Indian sub-continent.

“Business delegations from Germany, France, Russia, the US and other countries will explore investment opportunities in the Aerospace Park in their meetings with the state chief minister (B.S. Yeddyurappa) and top officials during the upcoming air show,” Khatri said.

A 35-member American delegation, led by Indo-US Business Council president Ron Somers and representatives from Boeing, Lockheed Martin, Honeywell and Raytheon will call on the chief minister Feb 8 to discuss investment proposals.

Similarly, Rolls-Royce India president Anil Shrikhande and Honeywell Technology Lab’s Krishna Mikkilineni will call on the state’s Industry Minister Murgesh Nirani and officials Feb 9, followed by a delegation from North Carolina in the US, headed by its Commerce Department Secretary J. Keith Crisco Feb 10.

“We are looking forward to sign a few agreements with global and Indian firms for investments in the aerospace sector and setting up their operations in the upcoming park,” Khatri added.

Lockheed Martin India Ltd director Jagmohan Singh, UK-based Wolver Hampton city council head Joy Patel and a delegation from the French aerospace industries association (Gifas) will also be calling on the chief minister to discuss their interests in the Aerospace Park.